Free! Cosmos World Chronicle - Book 0: Road to the Curse
by Artemis-LeFay
Summary: The Final Battle has concluded as everyone obtained their happy endings or new beginnings. As everyone moves on from this point in time, a new prophecy unfolds and test the heroes once again. New allies and enemies appear in these four unique mini-stories that build up to the anticipated Book 1: The Curse of Hollywood Heights.
1. Story 1: The New Future I

**『****Free! – Pre-Story: Road to the Curse! 』**  
フリー！– プレストーリー: Road to the Curse！

**Greetings:** It has been over 2 years since the conclusion of _Free! Eternal Swim Chronicle_ and the completion of the original adventures. A lot has changed both in my personal and professional lives but I will once again, write on a new fanfic series.

This is the start of the Generation 3.0. It is a "part-sequel, part-reboot and part-reset" as we will later dive further into the adventures ahead.

I will talk more about Generation 3.0 later on.

Do you need to have read both Generations 1 and 2? I would say _be familiar with one of them_ at the minimal requirement. Gen 3.0 is gonna be for "advanced readers" and it will get very difficult to read. However, do that not let that stop you from enjoying all the moments. Even I had to take a break for a while so don't feel bad.

Anyway let's get started and I hope you enjoy the start of a new saga!

* * *

**Story 1: The New Future**

10 Years after The Final Battle, Olympia Magna enters the 2nd golden age of all new sports and new people. Yet, a new prophecy shimmers one day in the kingdom of Atlantis, prompting Julius and the others to start the wheel of fate once more. A bunch of characters will also have curtain call appearances to conclude their stories.

Guest Sports Anime Appearances: Hakyuu!, Kuroko no Basuke, Yuri On Ice, Daiya no Ace.

Other Guest Appearances: Tak & The Power of Juju

* * *

**~Episode 1: The Birth and Rebirth~**

**The Kingdom of Atlantis**

On a sunny day filled with tropical breezes, the residents rejoiced the fulfillment of the restoration of Olympia Magna. Festivities were taking place as guests from around the world attended the activities while several Atlanteans could visit all the other towns. Everyone in this world was finally connected as one. No more tensions between different sports and their cultures. Even if a problem did arise, they were solved quickly with peace and sincerity.

Neo King Julius along with his husband King Antonius attended to a theater play to help set up and to thank the sponsors. A bunch of teens and kids were reciting the story of the ancient past in a "general rating" style. They recited the shattering, the three saviors, and parts of the final battle. A couple of scenes included musicals.

The natives also were hosting their own stories and ancient legends to the audience to share their culture with the world as well. Some even had exclusive tours to the palace and its newly built museum.

King Poseidon, Marius, and Ulysses swam together with a bunch of other swimmers in a synchronized swimming. While they also did competitions, they donated all their prizes to their fellow competitors and friends as well as those in need. At one point, they did receive a special plaque of recognition and honorable mentions that was meant for theirs to keep.

King Suijin and Romulus waited for Trajan and Brutus to return from Phoenix (the former Sportsbrooke) by the Blue Bridge that connected the main continent to Atlantis. They were often asked to sign autographs by the newly visitors who traveled from afar.

By sundown, the festivities lit up with paper lanterns, fireflies, and fireworks. The crystal also glowed in its majestic sky blue above the palace.

Julius stared out on his balcony alone when he heard a knock on the door. He turned to see Trajan walking in.

"How was your trip to Phoenix?" Julius asked.

"It was wonderful but I'm afraid there's something else…happening," Trajan replied grimly, "It's underground…"

* * *

Trajan led Julius down to the underground where the others waited for him.

"We tried to touch the water, but it kept boiling at our presence," Poseidon answered.

"Yet we hear splashes down on the other end of the chamber," Brutus explained.

"How is it possible? Did someone accidently fell to this sacred ground?" Julius asked as he approached the water. With a gentle touch, the water welcomed him in as it felt comfortable. He walked across the surface followed by the others where they saw a little child near one of the light stones.

The little kid gasped in fear, but Julius smiled and said, "The water suits you very well."

He lends his hand out to the child and the kid grasped it in reply. A flashing image appeared in Julius's senses and gasped to see the scene before him.

**_"This child…"_** he muttered.

"Is something wrong?" asked Antonius as Julius took a deep breath to relax.

"We must bring this one to our palace as a special guest. I'll keep him under my wing with our trusted nurses," Julius replied.

* * *

Once they settled the young one to a room, Julius returned to his throne room alone and called upon the crystal to reach out to the others in the eternal paradise. It was a difficult process since they separated their ties but Julius needed to know who this child belongs to and why it came here alone.

After a few failed attempts, Antonius lend his own power to him and together, they finally reached out to Pandora.

"Your majesty it's been a long time," she smiled.

"How have you been? The child here…" Julius began.

"Yes…he is one of my newborns," Pandora revealed, "My dear Artemis…"

"What happened…why he is here in our world?" he questioned.

"…Chaos is back," she said grimly.

They gasped while the daughter of Cosmos continued, "A new and terrifying prophecy has appeared in our sacred shrine. Because we have been both Dark Ones…the child has increased probability of becoming the next vessel of Chaos."

"That's terrible!" Antonius answered while Julius kept silent about "one of my newborns". How many did she had?

"After what happened to us, I sent my husband back to the mortal realm. As you can see, Dodecadron is also own probation period for a redemption but I feared Chaos is doing something once again to prevent him from completing the journey," Pandora answered painfully.

"We'll take care of him as long as we can," Julius replied, "If Dodecadron is back in this world…I might be able to find him quickly. But if not…"

"Don't push yourself," she said, "My sisters and I will do our best to find him."

"Is there anything else you need from us?" Marius asked.

"Actually, there is…" Pandora replied, "A new curse was cast from another realm…just something that you might need to dig into if it has affected your world."

"Sounds like a new trouble is brewing," Romulus pushed his glasses.

"Then we should communicate more often," Antonius added, "Especially now that this new crisis has begun."

"We will talk again soon," Pandora said as the communication began to break down, "Take care."

* * *

**Idaina Magna: The Suiei Temple**

Pandora turned to her sisters as Morgan said, "What the hell!? Why did you just lie to them like that?"

"Because, if **_they knew exactly what happened to us…they will drop everything and be coming here to solve our problems_**. No. They fulfilled their happy endings. You know it," she answered, "I can't burden them anymore."

"What do you plan to do?" asked Morgause.

"I…I don't know," Pandora said, "We're gonna need help once more but we're running out of options. Many us are here because we have our happy endings and thus there is no need to return to the mortal realms."

"And you can't return to the realm of the living either," replied Elaine, "Your story is done."

"But Dodecadron..." began Morgan.

"I have gifted my husband with a talisman so that he may stay safe and when he fulfills his destiny…he will one day return to us," Pandora explained, "His redemption story has begun…"

**Back in Atlantis**

Julius peaked into the room were Artemis was sleeping. He put a protection spell to the room so no one of evil would dare to break in or for him to escape. There was access to a bathroom in case the child had to use it.

He made his way back to his master room with Antonius as his beloved sat outside.

"We finally have peace…but could this really be the beginning of a new premonition?" Antonius asked.

"Nothing will wreak havoc to this world again," Julius reassured, "Our allies have made sure of that."

"That may be true but this child…is alien…I'm worried it will try to break even the tiniest cracks," he said.

Julius rested his hand on Antonius' shoulder, "Nankurunisa…"

They exchanged a brief kiss on the lips, knowing that they will overcome whatever the future holds in store. It would be a long journey ahead but one day when they retire, they will join with their Generation 1.0 selves.

"Take me again…" Julius breathed silently as Antonius began to flirt his body again before crashing gently on their soft majestic bed.

* * *

**Next Morning…**

The little Artemis woke up and saw a note written from the man who discovered him last night:

_Pleased to meet you Artemis. My name is Neo King Julius. Please use the washroom to clean yourself. One of my nurses will assist you if you need help. Afterwards, we would love for you to join us for breakfast._

Artemis shivered in fear from what happened before…a disaster struck and woke up in a dark cavern of water.

One of the servants walked in after taking off the protection barrier and saw Artemis's face filled with tears.

"A-Are you okay?" the young maiden asked.

"M-mommy…where is my mommy?" Artemis replied, "I'm scared…mommy, where are you!?"

Julius walked in as he used the power of his solar crystal to bring in warmth and hope to the child. Artemis stared in awe by the beautiful king before him.

"I have sensed you are in deep worry," Julius said, approaching to him.

Artemis nodded and started to cry. Julius gently patted him on the head and continued, "Your mother is alive and well. I have seen a vision of her and she's praying for you to be safe. She can't reach to you now, but I was asked by her to watch over you in her place."

"I'm so sorry," Artemis replied, "I…I don't know what happened but all I remember is being with my family and then everything grew dark and lots of screaming happened before I woke up in the water where you found me."

Julius turned to the maiden and said, "I'll help him clean up. Tell the others that they can start breakfast without me."

"Of course," she nodded and left the room.

* * *

After an hour, Julius brought the young Artemis to the outside patio where the others were chatting away and eating happily.

"Everyone, this little one is Artemis," Julius introduced, "We are going to help this kid by raising him as if he is our child."

"P-Pleased to meet you all," Artemis bowed before them, "I am new to this place, so I apologize if I am not formal."

They introduced themselves while Artemis smiled and ate a bunch of fruit and fish while Julius thought about this child more in his head.

_The child is mysterious, but Artemis goes by a male identity, I wonder if there's more to this person than what meets the eye…Pandora, what the hell happened to you and Dodecadron_, Julius noted quietly.

"Arty-chan, do you like penguins?" Suijin asked.

"Penguins?" he replied, confused.

"EHHHH!? Don't tell me you never seen a penguin!" the king gasped.

"Suijin relax!" Romulus replied.

"No, I have heard of them…I just never met one before," Artemis shrugged.

"We'll give you a tour of our kingdom," Marius smiled, "And as a bonus you'll have a VIP pass from us to visit all the animals including penguins."

"May I ask where am I at? It's such a grand place…" Artemis began.

"Welcome Artemis…to our beloved Kingdom of Atlantis," Romulus introduced, showing the view out with his hands, "We are the Iwasame Kings of this massive kingdom with our own castles and smaller realms on other islands. But we come here a lot for most of our work."

"We're happy to have you here," Brutus chuckled, "You'll love what this kingdom has to offer! Do you perhaps want a stag beetle souvenir?"

"I…uh…Julius told me about Atlantis a little bit, but I never thought it would be such a huge place," Artemis nodded.

"You haven't seen the rest of the world. This is planet Olympia Magna," Antonius added, "There are many other cities on bigger continents including Phoenix or aka Sportsbrooke."

"S-Sportsbrooke?" Artemis' eyes raised a little.

"Y-you heard of it?" Poseidon asked.

"Yes! My mother once told me about it…a town where all sports reside in coexistence," the child said.

"Indeed, Sportsbrooke was a unique town but it was also corrupted for a time. Certain sports were illegal to play but after a group of heroes arrived, they helped bring them back," Trajan smiled.

"Is there a way to visit that town? I would like to go see it," Artemis asked.

"We will go there very soon," Julius answered.

* * *

**The Miracle Palace, Phoenix  
(Formerly the city was called Sportsbrooke from ****_Free! Eternal Swim Chronicle_****, Gen 2.0 saga)**

The sun rose in a gradient of rainbows as the day began anew for the megacity. So many different sports inhabited and coexisted with acceptance and pace for each other. It was almost hard to keep track who, but everyone got each other's backs.

Kise, Yukio, Aomine, Takao, Midorima, Murasakibara, Junpei, Teppi, and Rinnosuke peaked through the doorway leading to the Temple of Time and the sacred fire as they saw King Kagami Sakuragi along with Kuroko and Akashi in a conversation.

"What's going on?" Yukio muttered.

"Did one of them foresaw a vision?" Takao commented.

"It's been a while that they used this sacred place," Aomine nodded.

"Perhaps they don't want anyone in?" Rinnosuke shrugged.

"Please chew your food quietly…" Midorima stared at Murasakibara sharply, "Or else…"

Seconds later, they felt something banging on the door. It turned out Akashi threw three scissors towards them.

"Honest to gods they never change," Akashi sighed, "Aren't you all gonna come in?!"

The group stumbled over as Kuroko and Kagami shared a sweat drop of nervousness and low chuckle.

"What news do you bring?" King Kagami smiled.

"Neo King Julius is coming to town with a new guest!" Kise said, "We heard the gossip going around through the girls and…"

"Momoi and Riko sure like to talk," Kuroko chuckled.

"Speaking of that child…that's exactly what I was told in the sacred fire," Kagami revealed.

"EHHH!?" they gasped.

"I thought you don't…" began Takao.

"I was trained by Akashi and with help from Kuroko…I now have the emperor eye," Kagami explained.

"Our Kagami has finally grown up hasn't he…?" Aomine flirted around him.

"Take it easy now," he answered sternly.

"S-Sorry!" the blue-hair blushed as the others laughed.

"So now what?" Murasakibara asked as he finished up his chips.

"We'll do like we did for the good ol'times," Kuroko nodded, "A celebration of our city in 10 years of existence with freedom, peace, and love."

* * *

**Hinata-Kuwahara Apartment**

Natsu Hinata turned to her beloved Sayako Kuwahara while cooking breakfast. The latter woke up late as usual, but it was at least a day off from work.

"You're so cute with that apron," Sayako commented while brushing her hand through Natsu's hair. The two were happily married for quite some time now as it felt like it was only yesterday.

"It's the one you bought for me," Natsu chuckled as they kissed briefly.

Natsu's cellphone rumbled a little. Picking it up, she read a text message from her brother:

_Guess what? Julius is coming! And he's got a new guest from the kingdom!_

"EHHHH!? It's been 2 years since he was here," Natsu gasped as she began to reply back.

"Julius eh?" Sayako laughed, "That man sure knows how to make his announcements."

The timer beeped for the eggs as Natsu panickily finished her message and tried to save the breakfast from burning. They both ate a nice breakfast and readied themselves for practice. From there, they prepared themselves ready for their sports of volleyball and kendo.

"I'll call you when I'm on break!" Sayako waved.

"Yeah, love you!" Natsu smiled back as she walked to the other direction.

* * *

**Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden**

Viktor and Yuuri K. took a walk down through the Desert Botanical Garden to enjoy the sightseeing. Their 10th wedding anniversary was coming up and they decided to do a double date with Otabek and Yuri P. but for now, this was their time.

The garden itself was filled with cacti, succulents, sculptures from different cultures as well a bunch of unique trees found around the world.

They both retired from figure skating about 6 years ago, but they made special appearances for a short while. With their collection of gold medals stored safely in their new home, they sometimes look back and feel satisfied.

Yuuri also thought back to when he did his archery training and considered going back into it and be a teacher. Viktor on the other hand wanted to work more with the gardens like this.

"So what do you think?" Yuuri asked.

"Hm?" Viktor answered.

"You wanting to work here?" he completed.

"I like it…it's definitely a new chapter from skating but…it'll definitely keep me busy. What it needs is a few roses in the mix," Viktor smiled, "And I think you'll be a great teacher too with your bow and arrow."

They cuddled happily and continued to walk through the flora maze. A bunch of quails ran around in circles and tweeted.

* * *

**Neo Karasuno: The Great Town Park**

Away from the massive desert lies the grassy prairies blessed from the reformation of the world. With the miracle cleaning the radiation from site, it was possible to move in and restore the town further.

The city grew to almost 250,000 people since its inception. Transportation was also built in connection to Sportsbrooke and Atlantis.

Meanwhile, our beloved volleyball gents were teaching new students on several defensive techniques and passes.

Shouyou smiled as his students were already on their way to becoming new athletes for this team. The White Doves created their own school district as well as the new White Doves Elementary, Middle and High School Teams. Tobio arrived a bit late after having a doctor's appointment but assisted the new students as well.

More districts were built as well with their own teams including: Nekoma, Date Tech, Aobajousai, and several others. Their friends including Kenma Kozume, Kuuro Tetsurou, Sou Inuoka, Takanobu Aone, Hajime Iwaizumi and others decided to help raise these other teams but at the end of the day, they were all "White Doves".

While volleyball was most common here, they were collaborating with King Eijun Mihashi to bring baseball as well. There was plenty of flat area in this region of the world that would allow a dozen of diamonds to be built.

After practice, Shouyou and Tobio joined up with their friends at the Wildlife World Zoo to catch up on updates. Kenma was in the zone of his portable game while Kuroo watched the others teasingly bet on their teams.

"Our team is looking strong and ready to start some matches!" Sou smiled.

"You best be ready for us," Aone smirked.

"None of you guys know what we have to show," Hajime laughed.

"AH…Shou-chan! Tobi-chan!" Sou cried out happily.

"We made it! By the way, did you hear the news?" Shouyou asked.

"Yeah, I wonder who Julius will bring this time?" Sou replied as they exchanged a hug.

"The king hasn't really set forth from his kingdom though in the last few years…I pray that he is doing well," Aone answered.

"Well as king, I'm sure he must support his people," Kenma replied.

"Kenma…" Shouyou sighed.

"Shou-cha," Sou held him back.

"I appreciate that he resurrected me and Noya but still…the name…bothers me a little," he bluntly answered.

"Look, he didn't mean to kill you or Noya-chan, we were all betrayed by Kei and that's how it all fell out. Anyway, I don't wanna consider the past anymore," the ginger-man said, "I've regretted the things I've done, and I am sure that he feels the same too."

"He's right…" Nishinoya arrived at the scene, "I may not be happy about what happened, but this is a great miracle…because now we can get to share our love of our sport as well as living happily ever after."

Kenma sighed and answered, "The truth is…I'm not good with people and I don't always like to interact."

Kuroo rested his arm around him and answered, "You might have died but don't forget…you were able to save us when we were in dire need. Julius was able to give you another chance so why can't it be said the same?"

"It's because that power…is both majestic and terrifying…it's the same reason why our world fell apart in the first place. Sure, the truth of history is recorded and it was the Dark One manipulating through that man's body but…I fear that this peace may be temporary. The news today about Julius coming back to the continent, I have a feeling there's more to it," Kenma revealed.

"We'll find a way to overcome whatever gets in our way," Shouyou answered, "Remember that we are together now."

Kenma nodded as the others cheered him up a little while they entered the zoo. However, Kenma's heart was not feeling the same as the others...he _**has**_ to talk with the king and it had to be done as soon as the opportunity opens.

* * *

**Old El Dorado: Tak's Palace**

Queen Jeera sat alone in her private chamber, praying to the Moon Juju for assistance. After a long period of incantations, the goddess appeared.

"My sweet majesty Jeera, what troubles you?" Moon Juju asked.

"I'm worried…in my dreams…I foresaw Julius walking with a child…and I saw another child in the background trapped behind a glass casing with water. I managed to contact the Dream Juju and it spoke a riddle to me…" she explained.

"What was the riddle?" the goddess questioned.

"Only two words: **_Allegiant Twins_**," the queen said.

* * *

King Tak arrived in Jibolba's room as the former shaman was dying on his mat. The other villagers moved out of the way to allow him through. He saw Tak kneeling next to him, begging to stay alive.

"It's been a long journey for all of us but now that our world is restored…time finally flows once more for all of us," the shaman muttered.

"It doesn't have to be," Tak replied, "I'll save you."

"No…Tak…I've seen your development and you finally have become a better king to all of us," he smiled.

"I-I don't know how to say goodbye," Tak tearfully answered, "You were like a father…"

Jibolba smiled, "I'm glad I was able teach you everything…remember your duty…and your queen…she'll need you more than ever…"

The old shaman closed his eyes as Tak's eyes drenched his face. Jeera walked in and huddled with her husband as the servants prepared the deceased man for departure and eventual burial.

* * *

**Back in Atlantis**

Artemis followed Julius though the wonders of the water kingdom. The villagers were doing their daily activities through the markets, schools, and recreation. Two guards were commissioned by Julius as an extra layer of defense.

The little one was in total awe at the sight of the atmosphere. Everyone was happy. A bunch of little kids were running around in the beach while an elderly brought an order of caught fish.

There were several different vendors that clearly were not from this kingdom as part of trading with the other regions.

"Hi there!" a little kid waved to Artemis.

"h-hello," Artemis replied.

"Are you new to this town?" the kid asked.

"Y-yes," Artemis blushed slightly.

Julius chuckled as he watched the two talking. The kid bowed upon seeing Julius.

"No need to be formal," the king said, "Our new friend is exploring the city."

"I love Atlantis! It's one of the most aesthetics places in the world!" the kid replied.

"I think so too, it's beautiful," Artemis agreed, "What's your name?"

"I call myself Shushepen," the kid said, exchanging a handshake to Artemis as the latter introduced himself his name.

"I have to go," Shushepen replied, "Have fun looking around Artemis!"

Julius and Artemis continued their way through the streets before heading to one of the beaches as well. The great crystal continued to shine above, protecting everyone.

Artemis sat down on the sands as he suddenly felt a bit sad.

"I wish mother was here…" the child spoke sadly.

Julius dug through his cloak before handing Artemis a heart-shaped necklace containing a small piece of the crystal inside.

"This was given to me from your mother. She wants you to wear it, so you'll feel safe," he replied, "One day you'll find your way back to her."

Artemis took the necklace and put it on as a bunch of seagulls soared through the scene. The sun was almost going to set soon but nobody was in a hurry to go anywhere. The two smiled at the wonders of their world as the ocean remained its calm and peaceful state.

**_~Next Water Time: Episode 2: The Forbidden Prophecy!~_**


	2. Story 1: The New Future II

**~Episode 2: The Forbidden Prophecy~**

_Twins…_

_Twins who are children of Concepts…_  
Will take two sides of the coin…one born of Chaos…and the other born of Cosmos…  
The Final Battle must continue…and it must end it all…  
Nothing lasts forever…  
Come forth the destruction at last!

* * *

Kagami snapped his eyes open and trembled from the horrifying vision he foresaw. He rushed again to the sacred fire of the Time Temple and sure enough saw the flames going from red to black.

"W-what's the matter!?" Kuroko shouted.

"T-The flames…they're black!" he cried out.

"You had another dream?" Akashi arrived with the other members of the Vorpal Swords.

"I saw the Final Battle…the one that we fought to save this world…there was a mysterious figure floating in the skies holding an uncanny power. That same being was the one who gave me, Eijun, and Alexa our Master Savior forms to defeat the Jabberwocks' fusion. That being…was not one of ours yet it came to our aid," Kagami explained.

"What are you saying?" Midorima asked.

"The sacred fire showed me that someone would be coming to this world…one of which is the same as that being from before," the king spoke, "Someone that powerful shouldn't be here unless…"

"Chaos…could it be?" Kise muttered.

"It can't be…the light from the Solar Crystal and the Heart of Atlantis banished it forever," Aomine replied.

"Darkness continues to find loopholes as long as there is light," Kuroko muttered, "Because the darkness…also has emotions."

"Well if Julius is coming here…I am sure he has his reasons to tell us about this new arrival," Akashi nodded, "Let's worry about that when the time comes. For now, let's prepare for the festival."

* * *

Chikako Ubukata and her 10-year-old son Saiga returned to their apartment with couple bags of groceries. Life for them was all peaceful yet sometimes thick between what happened between her and Shougo.

While the treatment and therapy mostly helped the former drug king, he was still on restraining orders and could only be with his son at a maximum of 15 days per month.

Saiga grew curious of his father when he was younger, not understanding the pain that they both endured before he was born (let alone how he was born rapidly through dark magic). Despite this, he got along with both parents.

"Mommy, will daddy ever be free from his restraining order?" he asked.

Chikako sighed softly, "Sweetie, I know you want all of us to become a family but…sometimes not every family can stay together."

"But it's not fair!" Saiga answered, "I know you tell me he's messed up in his head…yet I don't see it in him!"

"…Sagia, I love you and I don't want anything bad happen to you. Your father…as much as he might have made progress, I'm worried he might suffer a relapse and drag you into it," she said.

"Maybe there's a way to help him!" Saiga gasped, recalling the gossip from his school friends, "I've heard that Neo King Julius is coming to town! H-He can help save father and…we can become complete!"

"Saiga…" the mom said, "I know you want to be a complete family…together…it's just…that I cannot connect myself to him. I do not have any emotions of love and joy whenever I cross paths with him. Using magic on your father will not solve anything…let alone asking Neo King Julius to do so."

"BUT THIS ISN'T FAIR!" he cried out before running out of the apartment.

"SAIGA!" she screamed out.

* * *

**Hounan Valley**

Life for the parkour athletes continued to thrive with a new generation of participants. Several of them made it as far as the Great Olympics and won medals in the process.

As for Takeru, Riku, Nana, and many of their friends, they either retired or trained the new students. Riku and his brother Tomoe developed an institution to train them while Takeru spent his retirement traveling around the world and using his experienced moves on difficult obstacles in different climate areas.

Heath and his sister Diane also moved out but they each got their own place in the new developments of Phoenix. Yujiro and Ayumu would sometimes visit Heath to get updates on Takeru's world tour.

Nana continued to play the violin peacefully as her father, Joe listened to her music and drinking hot tea. The young lady could almost feel her mother's spirit watching her from the heavens. Moments later, one of the chords snapped as Nana gasped.

_This chord was just replaced and it broke again_, she thought.

A sudden gust of wind also struck but it wasn't warm…but rather chilling and foreshadowing something.

_Not again_, Nana sighed to herself, _only 10 years of peace…? Why can't things stay the way they are just as our lives are normal again…_

"It has begun…" she muttered, looking up to the skies.

* * *

Artemis opened his eyes and found himself floating in darkness. Ahead of him was a towering glass. Rushing up to it, someone else was also inside of the glass-filled water. A distasteful symbol appeared to be its talisman.

W-who are you, he thought.

He banged his hands on the glass but the stranger's eyes were closed shut.

"Are you my reflection!?" Artemis shouted, "WAKE UP! PLEASE WAKE UP!"

* * *

The young child snapped his eyes opened and gasped as Julius was sitting next to him on the bed.

"Did you had a nightmare?" the king asked.

"…yes, but it doesn't make any sense," Artemis answered.

"Some nightmares may be horrifying and scary while some may be mysterious and yet chilling," he replied.

"T-this person was in a glass prison filled with water or something…yet it looked like…" Artemis began but stopped and shook his head, "Are we going to Phoenix?"

"Yes," Julius smiled, "I wanted to make sure you were ready for the trip."

"R-right! I'll go get dressed," Artemis nodded as he jumped out and went to the wardrobe.

Julius turned to see Antonius standing by the doorway. He walked up to him, "I trust you."

"You know me," the other king said.

"I'm just worried about the child…it's aura is giving me a chill yet an innocent soul," Julius explained, "I won't be gone for no more than a week."

"I can take care of myself too but I'll standby if anything happens," Antonius answered, "You're taking Marius with you?"

"And Poseidon," Julius added, "They have come a long way especially with Ulysses…but I know he's attending to his swim charity event, so he'll stay here…Ulysses that is."

* * *

**In another room:**

Trajan looked through his mirror of hearts while his beloved Brutus was busy brushing his teeth. Ever since the child arrived in this land, he too, was starting to see vague visions. He put his sights into the mirror to recount them and see what was the meaning of these images.

_Julius, what are you hiding from us,_ Trajan thought.

"Something wrong?" Brutus asked after he spat his saliva down the sink.

"I'm fine…but I don't think Julius is…" Trajan answered.

"If it's about that kid, Julius knows what he is doing," Brutus said, "He wouldn't let that child fall into the wrong hands."

"He's going to take him to Sportsbrooke today…I only wish for safe traveling," Trajan replied, walking up to the window to see the majestic view of the ocean beyond.

The orange-haired king walked up to the silver-haired partner and hugged him from behind while flirting his hair. Trajan held onto his hand with a warm smile of hope.

* * *

**Outside: The Kings' Courtyard**

"Have they been checked?" Poseidon asked.

"Yes my king, the crystal's working fine with the vehicles as usual," the servant answered.

"Three of these vehicles have been defects but are being checked by the crystal operators," the second servant reported.

"Sounds like we'll just have enough for the travel," Marius replied.

"Perhaps we should only use the smaller hover crafts?" Ulysses asked.

The two servants looked at each other before the first one answered, "Will they give you enough to travel to Sportsbrooke and back?"

"The crystals that everyone wears are unyielding," Poseidon reassured, "The Solar Crystal is their mother."

"But we don't always need the Solar Crystal to rely on, we have the faith and the hearts of the people like you," Ulysses nodded.

"Now that I think about it, you were both amongst the population who evacuated this land before everything fell into ruin," Marius said, "What was this other world exactly did you reside on?"

The two servants looked at each other with some concern but the second man replied, "It was a world where time flowed…uncertainty. We spent our lives there living with strange beings with magic far greater than our own."

"Pandora…she spoke of a world that was home to countless entities of super beings," muttered Poseidon.

"Well then, let's just prepare for our travel," Ulysses nervously smiled.

* * *

Romulus lied down on the sands as a few different butterfly species decorated his hair and a couple were on his fingers. Suijin chuckled at how cute this was so he took out a camera and took some snapshots.

Normally the king would yell at his partner to not do this but ever since they learned about their past and discovered how important they were to the team, a hinted love turned into a full-bloom romance.

"Hehe, Rom-chan you're so cute with the butterflies!" Suijin chuckled.

"Where are your penguins, hm?" Romulus asked.

"Last I heard, they're in the icy kingdom of Viktuuri," Suijin answered with a hint of sarcasm.

"I thought the couple was in Sportsbrooke…" Romulus shrugged.

"You didn't catch my tone Rei-cha…" Suijin began but stopped and they both blushed.

"It's not a taboo to use our old names…Nagisa-kun," Romulus answered.

"I know but…they were names to hide our true identities," he said, "Yet those names…are like a part of us."

Suijin began to tear up a little, "It's just that I missed calling you that way…Rei-chan!"

Romulus hugged him and replied, "Me too…Nagisa…"

"I missed how we used to go on missions together…all of us. Haru-chan, Rin-chan, Mako-chan…Alexa-chan…even with Sou-chan, Ai-chan and Momo-chan. We grew into a strong team and we help from all the other sports, we restored this world and Pandora has her happy ending," Suijin answered.

"You want to head back to the palace?" Romulus asked.

Suijin nodded and they both packed up their picnic basket and supplies. They held their hands together along the way, heading to the water before walking across the gentle seas.

"We took so many pictures that day…before we said goodbye to everyone," Suijin recalled, "We've finally become a family. Asahi and Ikuya played a role too in helping us before they had to leave…"

"We'll see them again someday," Romulus answered.

"I know," Suijin nodded, "But by then our lives would be told…"

"A new story will begin for all of us," he said as he looked into his partner's eyes, "As long as we believe."

Suijin smiled and they continued their way back to the main island.

* * *

Antonius watched from the palace entry as Julius, Artemis, Poseidon, and Marius departing on their hover vehicles, heading their way to the east. Romulus and Suijin walked up the stairs and watched them depart as well.

"Are you alright Mako-chan?" Suijin asked.

"Been a long time since you called me that," Antonius said.

"Are they…?" Romulus began.

"Yes, they're heading to Sportsbrooke," he answered as he turned to the hallway.

"W-where are you going?" Suijin called out.

"Underground…" Antonius muttered as he arrived at the platform and used his crystal to open the gateway. The elevator lowered down just as Suijin and Romulus jumped in.

"You're not going to do this alone," Romulus added.

The trio made it safely to the Crystal Chamber where they found the child recently. Antonius analyzed the water and muttered, "The child…shouldn't have survived this yet the water welcomed him."

"Maybe his heart is just as pure?" asked Romulus.

"Julius and I managed to contact our friend in the afterlife…the child is…hers," he revealed.

The two gasped as Suijin muttered, "P-Pandora…"

"While we know that piece of knowledge, we still do not know how this child ended up here. Yet, Dodecadron also vanished from their realm…the same man whom we fought against and whom Alexa healed," he explained.

"Do you think…" Romulus began.

"Chaos is back, that's what we speculate…but after it was banished from this realm…it may have gone to a place to respawn itself and it's likely that darkness will soon begin a new threat," he answered.

They arrived at the pool of water where a few crystals that decorated around glowed softly. Far above was the hole that led to the skies where the main crystal floated above the palace.

Antonius walked to the water and gently poked his foot in. The water was warm and welcoming so he stepped in and realized he wasn't exactly walking on but rather going in. With a deep breath, he plunged himself into the darkness when the world around his vision spun rapidly.

Suijin and Romulus gasped to see Antonius (in their eyes) struggling as if he was drowning.

The King saw Pandora and Dodecadron along with their family living happily with the Gen 1.0 counterparts in peace. Then a shadow bolt struck through their existence and what appeared to be a splitting image of that child…

_W-what's happening,_ Antonius thought.

He found himself running through the void where he saw the glass tower filled with water with a young child inside of it.

_I-it can't be_, he gasped to himself.

Antonius tried to reach out to the child, but the same bolt of darkness narrowly missed his hand. He turned to see what looked like solidified darkness in a humanoid-physical form.

**_"The next time you intervene in a story that's not yours…you and the others will be far more than dead…"_** the darkness spoke.

The king threw himself back to reality as he gasped for breath. Suijin and Romulus managed to drag him to safety while the shaken king held tight to the couple.

"I-It's worse than I feared…" Antonius stuttered in fear.

"W-what did you see?" Suijin asked.

"…Chaos has returned and is keeping someone hostage. Where that place is I could not find out. It attacked me and foretold about not interfering with someone else's story," he explained after a couple of moments to relax.

"Did you see who this person was?" Romulus asked.

"Vaguely but it looks like it is the same child…," Antonius speculated.

* * *

Julius, Marius, Poseidon, Ulysses, and Artemis arrived at the region of Neo Karasuno on their hover vehicles. The child rested safely in Julius' arms with special technology features on the craft.

"Let us stop here for a break," Julius suggested and they descended downwards to the city. Already, a bunch of people were crowded to see their friends from the water realm.

It was like going through a paparazzi but of course it didn't stop them from attending to a diner.

"Do the people in this land…" began Artemis.

"It's the nature of being famous," Julius explained, "But at least in this world…we've grown to love each other. I guess being away from the land for too long really hyped them."

"Heh, talk about being a socialite," Ulysses chuckled.

"Well I suppose we are in no hurry to get to Sportsbrooke," Poseidon muttered.

"Are you crazy?" Marius asked, "You want to do photoshoots?"

"It'll at least remind others that we still exist," Julius nodded, "After all…we've finally became one with each other and the world."

They ate up whatever it was to their fitting while trying to at least stay sane from all the crowds. When it was time to leave, they went out through a back door but of course, a few fangirls were there with local organizations. The four signed their names while a reporter was trying to talk to Artemis.

_"What is it like to be with the great king?"_

_"Do you love Atlantis?"_

_"Where are you from?"_

_"Where are you guys heading to?"_

"We really didn't plan to make a tour here but since we are not on an emergency mission…" Julius began.

He twirled his Atlantean Dragon Staff and summoned a rainfall of various flowers descending from the skies. It led to a distraction to the larger audience while the people surrounding them were in awed.

"We'll be back for a proper tour, alright?" Marius added.

"Please least allow us a picture of you five together," the mini paparazzi group begged.

With chuckles, the five stood together for a minute or two before shaking hands to their small audience and leaving. The larger crowd tried to take snapshots of them leaving but they were too fast. It would be a matter of time before their presence would spread globally. But in all honesty, they weren't too bothered by it.

* * *

**The Phoenix Goddess Festival**

Once the group arrived at the town line, Julius used his staff to transform all their clothes into Yukata and Kimono disguises. Artemis was fascinated by the outfits as he recalled about them from his mother. It was then they learned that the festival was going on this evening so they casually made their way, crossing the town line and following the road to the megacity.

The crowds filled the downtown region as everyone was dressed accordingly and setting up fire lanterns. Buildings were decorated, flags were flown, and there were a bunch of vendors going around. There were also a bunch of different teams including basketball, volleyball, archery, football, soccer, parkour, ice skating and even a bunch of swimmers promoting for their schools.

A bunch of people were trying to find out if Julius and the others arrived after hearing the news from Neo Karasuno. Thankfully, these disguises and the crowds were making things difficult for these paparazzi.

"This is just like the good ol'times," Ulysses smiled.

"Yeah, just like when we first arrived here," Poseidon agreed.

"You guy were here just like this?" Marius asked.

"Well it wasn't as big but yeah a lot of people worshipped the princess goddess," Ulysses explained.

"And that's when our journey began too…when Mako-chan heard the voice of the goddess…" Julius added.

Poseidon was about to wander off and search for some goods to take back when the announcer spoke, "Ladies and gentlemen…we are now presenting the Princess Goddess, the Savior, and Vorpal Swords! Take your lanterns and show them the love for our city!"

A group of taiko drummers and other instrument players performed the music as a large explosion of confetti erupted from the statue. Seconds later, the Princess Goddess flanked by several other gentlemen dressed in their kimono stood at the top of the stairwell of the monument's base. The audience cheered on for the Princess Goddess happily as they unleashed their fire lanterns.

The lights from the lanterns made it more easily visible to see the princess. The woman had long hair colored in sky blue with eyes that matched the same color of the water. She was dressed in bright orange and white yukata that complemented the blue. She also wore a massive crown with jewels and an obi across her waist.

"PRINCESS GODDESS! PRINCESS GODDESS!" shouted the audience.

"Kuroko-san has really grown up," smiled Julius, "Yet he's just as youthful…"

"Don't let the kid hear you," whispered Ulysses.

"He'll soon find out one way or another…if he reaches out to his mind," he replied.

As the people continued to light up the boxes and sending them up to the skies, the lights shimmered everywhere. The princess sat alongside with a blonde hair man (Kise Ryouta) dressed in a golden-yellow gown. The second man was darker-blue haired with a tan complexion (Aomine Daiki) wearing a navy-blue yukata. The third person was green-haired with a pair of glasses (Shintarou Midorima) in a kelly-forest green kimono.

To the goddess's right-hand side stood a man red-hair with blood red eyes (Akashi Seijuro) wearing a crimson-colored gown right next to a gigantic, tall purple-haired guy (Atsushi Murasakibara) in a violet colored yukata while munching a small bag of chips. The savior was standing next to the goddess in his two-toned of red and black hair (Taiga Kagami) smiled widely and wearing a fired-colored kimono.

Two other ladies appeared alongside with the goddess. One with pink hair and a bright-sky blue yukata and the other with brown hair and white-silver kimono. The crowds roared and cheered for these people.

The princess goddess opened her handheld fan and unleashed magic to transform the lights into a rainfall of flowers and petals.

"Thank you so much!" shouted one of the people, "Thanks to your blessing, Phoenix will be protected once more!"

"PRINCESS GODDESS! PRINCESS GODDESS!" shouted the audience.

"It seems that by bestowing the light to the goddess and in return she gives out flowers back…of course, it's a way to pay respects to her," Artemis observed, "It's a similar ritual mother told me too."

"Your mother must have been very knowledgeable," Julius answered.

"She knew a lot of worlds and told me several stories…but I never thought I'd get to see them in person," he said.

Artemis looked at the following petals just as a flower floated down to his hands. He caught it and gasped to see what it was.

"T-These are…" he began.

"A lotus?" Marius asked.

"M-Mother's flower!" Artemis gasped, "I-Is she here!?"

_I'm sorry child but your mother is not in this land_, a voice echoed in his head.

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?" Artemis shouted.

******Next Water Time: ****_Episode 3: Departures of New Beginnings!_**


	3. Story 1: The New Future III

**~Episode 3: Departures of New Beginnings!**

**Mini Flashback: Neo Karasuno (just before Julius and co. passed by)**

Kenma was busy looking through his personal belongings when he heard a knock on his door. He opened it to see Noya, Shouyou, Kuroo, Sou, and even Aone

"A-aren't you guys busy?" he asked.

"Yeah but you weren't showing up to help us train the students lately," Sou answered.

Kenma sighed and replied, "I guess there's no need for me to hide anymore."

"Are you moving out?" Shouyou asked.

"…I'm afraid it's more than that," he answered, "I come to realize that after all what I went through…as much as I am happy the world is saved and all…I can never get over my death and resurrection. So I decided that I want to leave this world entirely."

"EEHHHH!?" they all gasped.

"B-but what about your medals…your trophies…" began Sou.

"As long as my memories of those days remain in my heart, I don't need them," Kenma smiled, "Besides, I saved all the pics to my gaming device so it's all good."

"K-Kenma…" Kuroo began as he too felt some tears rolling down his cheeks.

Shouyou spilled a silent tear but Kenma answered, "Don't cry for me you guys…I'm gonna go to Julius because I've heard rumors that he's coming to Sportsbrooke. I want to go see how I can get that wish granted."

"We're coming with you," Noya answered, "I don't wanna see you leave but…we can't just stand by without saying a goodbye."

"We gave the students a week's vacation just in case something like this was going to happen. You won't have to go through with this alone. If you do go, we at least want to say goodbye likewise," Aone said.

"T-thank you," Kenma blushed slightly.

* * *

**Present Time: Back at the Festival**

"I-I'm hearing voices!" Artemis cried out.

_Don't be afraid young one, it is I…the princess goddess_, the voice continued in his mind, _please forgive me._

"Kuroko's talking to him," whispered Poseidon.

"Let him listen," Julius said.

"P-Princess, have you met my mother? Do you know her?" Artemis asked.

_Long ago I did but my friends and I have a message from her that we must tell Julius and his kings who are with you now. Please tell Julius to meet with us at the palace tomorrow morning_, the goddess instructed.

"I-I…" Artemis began when he could feel a warmth of air prompting him to sleep. He was caught by Poseidon and Marius as Julius realized that the goddess must have used a sleeping spell.

He's been tired on the journey, the goddess said to the others mentally.

As Kuroko continued to dance as the Princess Goddess, he sent Kagami to go find the group and bring them to the old loft without any media attention.

* * *

**Kagami's Old Loft**

They safely made it to the old place where Kagami has kept his title to the space. While he uses it more for any close relatives and friends, he has sometimes worked here or to get away from the media including the paparazzi.

"Such a beautiful child," King Kagami said as he tucked Artemis to bed.

"Indeed," Julius agreed, "But I have seen something about this young lad…an uncertain future awaits."

"Perhaps we should let you two talk things for bit," Marius suggested, "We'll stay outside on guard."

The two former saviors waited till the trio left before their cheerful expressions turned a bit more grim and grave. From there Kagami explained his vision about a prophecy involving "twins" and the battle of good vs. evil within them.

"I-is something wrong?" Kagami asked after lecturing.

"It's nothing…I'm fine," Julius smiled despite feeling the pain for the child's future being burdened.

"No, you're not…" he replied, "I know you."

"Point taken. I'm worried that if what you saw is true…how can this child survive on its own if we must not be allowed to raise him?" the other king answered.

"We will find someone who will," a voice replied as they both turned to see King Eijun, the final savior.

"Yo, how did you get here so…?" Kagami asked before hugging Eijun with a laugh.

"Queen Jeera sent me," he said, "Well with Tak's blessing of course. Thank god that man has changed his ways in the last decade."

"I'm glad they're doing well and so are you," Julius smiled, "But who do you think will raise this child for us?"

"We need someone who is willing to leave this world with him," Eijun replied.

Julius lowered his head for a moment, "I see…"

"Are you becoming attached to this child already?" Kagami asked.

"I know I shouldn't but…I am," Julius said, "Especially now…my fellow kings and I agreed to raise him as our own until…"

"He can't stay in this world," Eijun answered, "Jeera also told me she encountered a tribulation…something about helping others that have nothing to do with us or this world…"

Julius's head jerked up a little as he sensed his beloved Antonius in trouble…the same words echoed in his head:

**_"The next time you intervene in a story that's not yours…you and the others will be far more than dead…"_**

_What am I going to do_, Julius thought…_I can't just banish this child…not when he made some new friends…_

They heard a knock on the door.

"Come in," Kagami called out.

Marius, Poseidon, and Ulysses walked in along with a group of old friends from Neo Karasuno. Julius' eyes widened a little to see Kenma, Noya, Aone, Hajime, Shouyou, Sou, and Kuroo.

"King Julius, I have something in need from you," Kenma bowed, "You have graciously brought me and Noya back to life with the greatest miracle. However, my time here in this renaissance world has only made me feel far from happiness. After what you've done to me and Noya, I have a wish."

"We'll deal with Artemis later," he nodded to his fellow saviors before continuing, "Kenma. I know you are still upset with me all those years ago…you don't have to hide those feelings."

"You're right. But I must say that upset is only an understatement. You could use your wretched staff to wipe those memories away from me like how you were as the Dark One. However, if your heart is purer than that…my wish is to travel from this world," Kenma said.

**_"I know,"_** the king replied, **_"If you truly want to leave, I'll dig through what I can with a friend of mine from another world. He'll be the one to guide you out of here."_**

"You will?" Kenma gasped a little as Noya watched his reaction sharply.

**"Yes. ****_You both deserve your best chance to find happiness…even if it means getting out of this world entirely_****,"** Julius answered.

"Your majesty if you may, I do not have much bitterness towards you, but I do not want Kenma to pay the price on his own," Noya said.

"How about we settle this tomorrow morning at the Miracle Palace?" King Kagami suggested, "Julius can work with our things to get your wish granted."

"Very well. By sunrise we meet," Julius agreed.

* * *

**Next Morning: At the Miracle Palace**

With assistance from Kuroko, Akashi and Kagami, Julius managed to use the water bowl to reach out to their friend, the witch boy from the other realm. The water reacted by forming a portal hologram projection in midair.

Watanuki listened to Kenma's summary and his wish before nodding.

"Now then Kenma…I shall grant you your wish but there is a price you will have to pay," Watanuki answered.

"I…I don't know if I have anything of value to give," he said.

"A price doesn't always mean you need to give a physical object…a price can come in many different forms," witch boy explained, "Other forms of payment can include: memories, talents, reputation, personal luck, relationships, and many others."

_I hope he's not gonna ask for my gaming device_, he thought.

"Kenma, your price is the talent and skill you've developed in volleyball. If you agree to the terms, you will no longer have any capabilities to play volleyball professionally nor will you have your magical abilities such as your dump shot," Watanuki revealed.

"Witch boy," Noya said, "Does this mean that if he pays the price, will he ever return to this world at least for a visit?"

"The wish is entirely his decision," he replied.

"…Kenma if you truly leave us," Shouyou began to tear up a little.

"I'll go with you," Kuroo added as the other gasped.

"K-Kuroo!?" Shouyou, Aone, Sou, and Noya cried out.

"We were from the same team…and I don't want him to suffer alone," Kuroo explained.

"K-Kuroo," Kenma began.

"You'll need someone who can bear the journey ahead and you going alone is unhealthy," he answered back.

"Count me in," Hajime added as everyone turned to him, "Oikawa may be gone but my trauma from his antics haunts me sometimes. I need a place to have a fresh start."

"W-what is this?!" Shouyou answered, "Are we never going to see you guys again?"

"Of course, we will…well I don't know what Kenma wants but I know I would be happy to visit you again," Kuroo smiled.

"The same with me," Hajime, "We love you and with that, we promise to return."

"Then…because I too died and was reborn, I want to take my chances," Noya said, "Besides, you'll need someone energetic to the mix."

**_"The four of us will pay the price together for this journey,"_** they wished to Watanuki.

"Excellent," witch boy said, "Mokona…"

"Yep!" the dark manjuu smiled as it opened its mouth to digest a small object before it reappeared in front of the four declared travelers.

"This is the Sterling Compass. It will be your guide to your new world. Each of you will represent its cardinal direction. Like Kenma's wish, your price is your talent in volleyball but in exchange you will develop new hobbies wherever you travel," Watanuki explained, "Good luck and I wish you the best on your journey."

They closed the communication as Kenma was anticipated on this new chapter of his life ready to unfold. He turned to Noya, Kuroo, and Hajime with a warm smile.

From there, the kings and Artemis watched the volleyball players exchanging tearful goodbyes with hugs and brief kisses just as the compass glowed with the arrow spinning rapidly. Seconds later, a rip in space appeared in front of the four young men. A small gust of wind blew within the area upon the activation of the portal.

"Best of luck from all of us," Aone said.

"We're really gonna miss you," Sou agreed sadly.

"You're not allowed to come back until you find your answer," Shouyou tearfully breathed.

"Promise me you'll keep everyone else in good spirits," Kenma answered, "By then, I may return for a bit."

"You better! I'm never okay with anyone of us being apart!" the orange-haired smirked sadly as he and Kenma released their hug.

Kenma, Kuroo, Hajime, and Nishinoya stood together to see Aone, Shouyou, and Sou along with their allies. Julius smiled with a nod while the others prayed for their safe travels.

_Finally, the four of them linked their hands together, turned to the exit and jumped through. The portal sealed up their fate._

"Will they ever come back?" Artemis asked.

"They will find their way back when they need to," Julius answered.

Artemis nodded and he turned to Kuroko (despite a bit of shock that he was the Princess Goddess) who smiled at him back.

"Forgive me for not making myself in a proper introduction. My name is Tetsuya Kuroko, the phantom of basketball; also known as the Princess Goddess of Sportsbrooke," he introduced.

"It is an honor to meet your acquittanced," bowed Artemis, "But I must ask you a question."

"Go on ahead," Kuroko answered.

"This flower was given to me last night…a lotus…just like what my mother has back home," Artemis said, "How do you know her and has she been to this world before?"

"Yes…to both," Kuroko revealed, "Your mother was here in this land…taking on a disguise because your father was cursed into the darkness. Her mission was to protect a group of heroes she trained them to become as well as finding a way to reverse the suffering your father was into. Eventually, her destiny was fulfilled and because she and her husband were already dead to start with, they could not stay in this realm."

"All I want is to go back home…but…I have a feeling I've been sent to this world for a purpose," Artemis replied.

"Indeed…it's because your story has never been told before until now…you are searching for your destiny, a purpose, and most of all…your true self," Kuroko answered.

"I…I love this world already!" Artemis blushed.

"It appears you do," he chuckled, "But I think you're loving Atlantis a lot too."

"Y-Yes," the child turned his head to the side as everyone smiled and laughed a little.

"We already have a place for him," Julius answered, "He'll stay with us for now."

"Your decision will certainly bring consequences," Kuroko nodded, "I hope it's all for the best."

The water kings could feel the tension between themselves and the others. While they all wanted the best for Artemis, it was clear that this was not his world to be in. Yet, they didn't want to hurt this child's feelings. With silent nods, Julius and his men departed with the child.

"You're not going to stop them?" Akashi asked.

"…the child is innocent with a pure heart," Kuroko replied, "They will soon have to send the child away but let them be."

"I'll go say goodbye on your behalf," Kagami answered as he rushed out.

The group were about to walk down the stairs when a young boy was already half-way up. Julius recognized the child as Saiga from Haizaki and Chikako.

"Little one, is something the matter?" Julius asked.

"Mommy won't let me see daddy!" Saiga said, "She thinks we'll never be together as a family!"

Kagami arrived to hear this commotion and sighed. Saiga has always been on the run from the mother ever since her and Shougo live separate places (and not exactly close by).

They all turned to see Chikako arriving as she panted so much from the chase. She immediately recognized Julius and bowed down on her knee.

"There's no need to be formal," Julius said.

"Julius, I only told him that father isn't exactly…" she began.

"How about moving to our kingdom?" the king asked, "I asked you this before…and Shougo has shown great progress according to my fellow doctors."

"We'll have to see," Chikako answered as Saiga's face turned to a smile. From there, the kings and Artemis took off on their vehicles.

* * *

**2 Years Later: The Kingdom of Atlantis**

As the years went on, Artemis grew closer to the inhabitants. At one point, he accidentally called Neo King Julius "daddy" but he chuckled and appreciated to be called that.

With Sagia and his mother, they moved out to Atlantis finally but made sure to keep their location still hidden from Shougo in case of a relapse. However, the family was beginning to heal even more as a result of this reunion.

Artemis was enrolled at the Atlantis Academy where he studied the history of the ancient world as well as the legend of the Magic Six and Iwasame Senshi. When he found out that they were the same people, he confronted Julius at the palace one night.

"Y-you…and the others…?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes…I was once named Alexa Marotta as an alias. My beloved Antonius was Makoto Tachibana and you can name the rest of us," the king replied.

"Do you ever used your names a few times…after you rose into power?" Artemis questioned.

"Sometimes…but we hardly use those names anymore. The history books didn't reveal this but the reason why we stopped calling them is that…" Julius began.

"There is another Haruka Nanase…the world where I was from!" Artemis concluded.

Julius nodded, "Yes…we didn't add that to the history lesson because already our story of this world is complex. However, we do have the complete chronicles here in the castle," he explained, "There you will find all the events that took place both in the past and the present."

Time continued onward as Artemis was also enrolled into a swim team with several students learning the ways of swimming. Shushepen encouraged him to join his medley team with Isris and Aidol.

"When is the medley competition?" Artemis asked.

"In the next month," Shushepen said, "You're good with the freestyle in general but you need to gain more speed."

"More speed?"

"Yes. We, the Atlanteans have a reputation on our speed when we compete with other swimmers around the world. While several of them have beat us in individual competitions, we usually win more of the medley rounds," Isris explained.

"There may be something…" Aidol began when he was given the sharp stare from Isris and Shushepen.

"Hm?" Artemis grew curious.

* * *

The trio took Artemis to a secluded area of the shoreline as Isris reminded him to not speak about this to anyone outside the kingdom.

"This is where how we train ourselves to swim faster," Aidol lectured, "In this area of the water lies a beautiful creature that is said to give us the power to swim fast. However, in order to get its power, we have to chase after it."

"Chase? What are we looking for?" Artemis asked.

"it's a shark…known as the Takea. If you touch its fin, it grants you a power-up to swim faster," Isris revealed.

"Sounds a little dangerous…" Artemis muttered.

"Well you have learned how to hold your breath underwater but…here, take this," Aidol handed Artemis a small apparatus-like device, "It's called an Air Bladder. You can use it to regain oxygen."

He took it and thanked them. Once they instructed him where to go, Artemis treaded his way through the water before taking a deep breath and going under.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Shushepen said, "I need to follow him!"

"No! You do realize that the Takea freaks out when there's too many swimmers!" Isris argued.

"We are putting the child at a dangerous risk! Oh, heavens forbid something happens!" he answered before he too jumped in.

* * *

Artemis swam in a downward fashion. He could feel the water pressure increasing heavily on his lungs. He took out the apparatus and breathed into it. Once he was ready to continue, he followed the glowing crystals.

The cavern of the Takea was nearby. Artemis could only pray that the shark was in there.

* * *

When it was discovered that Artemis was not in his classes, the Iwasame Senshi quickly dispatched the water knights to find the missing child. It didn't take long to find out that Artemis went to the restricted depths after Aidol and Isris reported what happened. They also told that Shushepen went after him.

"Why did you tell the boy about the Restricted Depths!?" one of the guards shouted.

"Because he would be sooooo good for food!" laughed Aidol as he and Isris twisted and mutated their forms into familiar monstrous creatures yet they were gigantic.

"N-NERBILS?!" another guard shouted.

"No we are beyond those pesky, weaklings!" the Aidol!Mega-Nerbil growled.

"Bestowed by our master! We will soon take back what is ours!" Isris!Mega-Nerbil added.

"So it's true!" a familiar voice was heard.

The guards turned to see Julius and his kings assembled. Julius' deadly eyes stared into those monsters that they were, treating them with the coldest greeting.

**_"You have returned…Chaos!"_** Julius finally spoke with an unimpressed aura.

"Oh Chaos isn't back yet but awaits in another realm…." Aidol!Nerbil replied.

"Chaos will soon have its revenge by destroying that child!" Isris!Nerbil agreed.

Juliu readied his Atlantean Dragon Staff with the Solar Crystal fixed in its shell. With a silent spin, rays of light struck the monsters dead on, turning them into dust.

"You guys look!" shouted Antonius as they turned to see someone emerging out of the water. It was Shushepen holding onto Artemis.

"A bunch of box jellyfish attacked us while I was rescuing Artemis!" he panicked.

Julius swiftly took out his solar crystal from his staff and tried to listen for a pulse remaining in Artemis's body with his free hand on the boy's chest. It was very faint but there was a pulse barely there.

"What are you going to do?" Antonius asked.

"I'm going to use my body as a temporary resource," Julius answered, "You and the others must hurry and find someone who are willing to raise this child! He must not be in this land anymore or else the poison will kill him!"

"W-What!?" Shushepen gasped, "Where's Aidol and Isris?!"

"Those two…were monsters in disguise. They never truly existed as our people. Thank you for rescuing Artemis but I'm afraid you will never see him again," he said.

"Y-Your majesty…" the other boy began to sniff out some tears.

"It's for the best," Julius answered, "Go find the Healing Reeds! I'll need them for bandage."

* * *

**Far beyond the reaches of space time…**

If anyone were to describe this realm, it was twisted with all sorts of nightmares and darkness. It was here where the remnants of Chaos solidified itself and assumed a new form and used its power to transform a blank universe into its own playground and kingdom. The golden orb which was used to hold all its power was broken during the final battle but it was no longer needed. Now that it became its own entity, anything was possible with its cold, bare hands.

To keep such a phenomenon, any living beings could do as they pleased as long as they all served the power of Chaos. While this universe is where all possibilities are born without paying a price, the darkness could not fully trust the nature of this space.

Chaos also took on a new name…Ataxia.

**_"So…it appears that my creations have failed me…that blasted king once again interferes with my plan! No matter…the awakening of the other one will for sure bring an end to all of the Comos…" _**Ataxia muttered as it stared into the energy pool of reflection.

"The child is still asleep," one of the servants spoke.

"That child will be vital to our plan…keep it sealed and asleep. It must never wake up," Ataxia ordered.

* * *

Julius brought the child to his room just as Tekela and Zulion arrived to him. They both were members of the Water Knights and former leaders of the Atlanteans while they evacuated the city eons ago. After the restoration of the kingdom and the planet, they were given special awards and new titles for their services.

Shushepen provided the supplies to Julius and sadly departed after. The king himself was heartbroken but the only way to preserve this child's life…

"Master, we have arrived," bowed Tekela and Zulion.

The king held his hand onto barely conscious Artemis, "This child…came to this land just over 2 years ago…it was all in peace until today's incident. Our enemy has begun its attempt to curse this world once again. We cannot allow Chaos to return in any means. It's highly likely that it wants this child."

"What can we do?" Tekela asked.

"I need you two to raise this child…in a new land from here," Julius revealed.

Zulion looked a bit saddened by this order but the king reassured to them that one day, they will meet again.

"We have to give this child his best chance," Julius concluded.

Trajan walked in and said, "I am sorry to intrude but I wanted to give Tekela my mirror as a token. I just hope it will help you two on your quest."

Tekela took the mirror and thanked him. Julius felt a heartbeat finally, but he took out a small glass vial and muttered silently, "Oh Artemis…I wanted for you to stay but I have to erase your memories of these couple of years…you deserve a better place than here."

Streams of magic poured out from the child's forehead before filling up the bottle.

"Will the child…?" Zulion began.

"He's recovering but when he must not wake up here," Julius said, "This memory vial will be the price for witch boy to get the child out of this land."

"What about us?" Tekela asked.

"Your memories will be altered but should the child face anymore danger, you will both wake up to your original personas," he replied.

Julius released his hand from Artemis and turned to a bowl of water he prepared earlier.

"Is this sufficient?" the king asked.

"Yes," witch boy answered through the water, "You have prepared the child's guardians."

"They're ready," Julius replied, "Send them to the new world."

Zulion and Tekela carried Artemis on two different sides. It was a matter of time before he will wake up but it has already begun as the vision around the trio turned black. Julius prayed for their happiness on this new journey.

Wherever they will end up, it was going to be the start of Artemis's true quest. Would they meet again remains to be seen.

_Goodbye…Artemis Le Fay_, Julius lowered his head.

**END OF SHORT STORY #1**

~The Adventure Continues in Short Story #2: Ignition Restart!~

Enlisted to keep the child safe, the two Atlantian natives must raise Artemis as their own son. Sent from paradise to a world whose story was already told, how long will it be before the child learns the truth? It also turns out that they're not the only familiar characters in this realm…

* * *

_A little spoiler/anticipation for Gen 3.0:_

_You will see Neo King Julius, Atlantis and Sportsbrooke again in Book 2 of Gen 3.0._


	4. Story 2: Ignition Restart I

**Story 2: Ignition Restart!**

Enlisted to keep the child safe, the two Atlantian natives must raise Artemis as their own son. Sent from paradise to a world whose story was already told, how long will it be before the child learns the truth? It also turns out that they're not the only familiar characters in this realm…

* * *

**~Episode 1: First Day in the Heights~**

**Note: **Planet Duniya is a world from Gen 1.0 used in _Voyage of the Magic Six_. It has made some cameos in Gen 2.0. See Heroes of the Gods Episode 12 of VotMS for dates and events

**Note 2: **The events here are during "The Curse" (major plot for _Book 1: The Curse of Hollywood Heights_, but this is before present day events). There are also flashbacks for a few characters taking place in completely different realms and time…

* * *

The young child opened his eyes and found himself lying on top of rubble consisting of broken cement, plaster, torn fabrics, wood, and ash. His head felt like it spun so much but he could get on his feet without vertigo. He saw two older men also lying on the rubble together.

"Father! Daddy!" he shouted out, running towards them.

Joseph opened his eyes and Artemis hugged in, crying, "I thought you…"

"It's alright. We've survived," he said as Jordan stirred awake.

"But I don't understand…did anyone even knew about the fire?" the kid asked.

"Not sure but now that we don't have anywhere else to go to…we better make a move before any thugs try to experiment this place," Joseph answered.

Jordan turned to see a handheld mirror in his hands. His subconscious spoke to his heart to keep it safe so he tightly gripped on it.

"It looks like this family token survived," Jordan said.

"The mirror!" Artemis and Joseph gasped.

"Yeah, I'll hang onto it. Let's get out of here," he replied.

The trio looked a way to climb down from the apartment (it was a 4-story level) and they were fortunate to find a set of stairs that appeared mostly intact. A few steps were missing or damaged but the framework was mostly stable. Once they got down, they headed in a northern direction of the city, entering to a series of neighborhoods.

"When did this area get so fancy?" Joseph asked.

"Not sure," Jordan replied, "Maybe all the residents…?"

"What is this town papa?" Artemis asked.

They kept on walking and they finally found a sign that said, "Hollywood Heights Corp. Limit".

* * *

**Smith's Development & Community Design: V's Tower HQ**

"…and thus, this project will benefit the community in recovering from this recession," concluded Devon McKinney, "Any questions?"

The project manager waited for a response, but no one raised their hands.

"Sounds like we are all a consensus. Excellent. Review the objection and if you do any questions, I can be reached via email. Thank you," he dismissed the attendees.

He returned to Veronica's office, gently knocking on the CEO's door. With a response, he opened in as the boss turned around to greet him.

"Looks like your presentation has greeted me with exceptional expectations. Good work," she complimented.

"When do you suggest we start this project?" he asked.

"Before the season's change. Assuming everything goes as planned, I would like to see this completed before year's end," Veronica answered, "In Phase 1 that is."

"Of course, Ms. Smith," he answered as his heartbeat was relieved about just Phase 1.

After he left the room, Veronica turned to her window as the neighborhood of Hollywood Heights was booming in gentrification. This suburb was a part of the major Aeuropa City but it was also the old location of the Aeuropa Casino. After the place was bombed decades ago, it became a major slum area for a bunch of minorities. It was filled with pressure of social, economic and other kinds of problems throughout the corridor.

It took a bunch of different wealthy families (including hers) along with the government to pitch in a project that would seeming bring a promise to the residents. Instead, it dispersed the community, separating their families, friends, and gangs apart in hopes to wipe their existence out of the picture. Several of these minorities tried to protest for better and fairer living conditions but many of them were sent away, arrested or killed.

Hollywood Heights was then born once 50% of the city was gentrified. It is currently 75% completed.

_Soon everything will proceed as planned_, she thought, _a new era will be in for Aeuropa City as well as for the rest of this wretched planet…_

Veronica had desired to take this planet under her reign as much as possible, event it meant to turn every nature or supernatural against each other. She kept a secret map of the entire planet where all the supernatural beings resided and knew that it was a matter of time before her powers can reign outside this city of walls.

* * *

**Judd's Tavern**

Shiloh, the bar owner of Judd's wiped the countertop clean while watching the clock. It was only 9:30 AM but the bar was having a special event starting at 10 AM. A few other employees working with him included Marty, Lou, and Ray. They were busy preparing the sign up, cleaning the dust as well as warming up the place.

While the tavern wasn't a full restaurant, they did provide brunch and dinner as well as late night and parties. The business was opened by Shiloh's father Judd who allowed opportunities for the neighborhoods to come work, play, and preserve their community in any way possible. It was after all, a location in the heart of the original town before Hollywood Heights began to gentrify.

He turned to briefly look at the photo of himself and his father. Clearly it was a wonderful time but after the old man died, it had not been easy to keep the legacy.

"How are the decorations?" asked Shiloh to one of his employees.

"They're ready," Lou answered.

"It's almost 10 sir, is there anything else we can do?" asked Ray.

"I can take it from here. I'll give you your incentives later this week, alright? Thank you for the hard work," Shiloh dismissed them.

"See you!" Marty smiled.

Shiloh watched them leave as his smile turned grim as he was not looking forward to deal with those bastards again…

_At least they haven't mentioned…or for Pete's sake, don't jinx it_, he thought.

He loved his employees very much, but it was the people who were gentrifying this area of town that kept him in the shadows. They were going to be having a 10 AM meeting here with Veronica. In past meetings, she would always make an insult to him and his bar and hinting of having it a facelift or being wiped from the face of the city.

_I better get the drinks started or else I'll be seeing faces that I wanna bitch slap…_

* * *

**Aeuropa Real Estate – Hollywood Heights**

"So it is likely that our current insurance won't cover not even half of costs here?" asked Jordan as he, Joseph and Artemis were at an appointment to find a new home.

"Afraid so, seeing that you have no documentation or in our system records, we cannot provide you a new home or temporary condos," Lena answered.

"What do you suggest we go? Living in the streets?" Joseph slightly growled.

"You might be able to get some aid from the government in the central city," she replied, "Depending on your finances…"

"Our family business was at the main level of the apartment," Jordan answered.

"Sounds like a desperate family," a voice said.

They turned to see a tall, dark-skinned man dressed in full-blown business attire with a stern yet calming expression. His face was youthful with a good hair trim both his head and his face.

"M-Mr. Yago, I…" Lena answered.

"I'll talk to these fine gentlemen here," he said, beckoning them to follow.

He led the trio to his office and welcomed them to Hollywood Heights and adding a brief apology about the employee.

"I have heard of your family business," Ben Yago answered, "It was from your family Jordan, right?"

"Yes, it was my mother's…she and her sisters were one of the original members of the Greater Society that sheltered a lot of people as well as having a complex apartment system," he explained.

"Perhaps I may hand over a proposition for the three of you?" Ben asked.

"And what catch or strings there if we do accept it?" Jordan replied.

* * *

**The Neighborhood of Hollywood Heights**

The Patterson trio were led to explore the neighborhood where they saw how most of it was renovated and cleaned up. There were a lot of shopping areas, new hospital facilities, and even a bunch of different parks and recreation.

"The City of Hollywood Heights continues to evolve as they play a huge role for the entire Aeuropa Metropolitan," Ben said, "And it's also a place for second chances."

"Sounds great, but where do we start?" asked Jordan.

"We have a new development for families who suffered terrible accidents and need time to recover. The package also includes job opportunities as well and even community colleges if you desire to," Ben explained.

"And…Artemis?" added Joseph, "His education?"

"We have all the primary and secondary schools for your beloved son," Ben smiled, "With exceptional education, he will have one of the best programs offered in the metro."

Ben brought the family over to a town center called Hyperion Park.

"Looks very luxurious," Joseph said with a bit of a sweat drop on his forehead.

"Don't be ridiculous," Ben chuckled, "It's affordable as long as your child is enrolled at Paradise Elementary School. Also, if one of you ends up with a job here, you'll be able to live here as long as you want."

"Is…there a catch to it?" Jordan asked.

"Consider this proposition and there won't be a catch," Ben said with a wink towards Artemis.

* * *

The three were settled into their new apartment after signing leases and receiving resources from the real estate. Artemis was in awed with the atmosphere of people living so peacefully. People were in and out of the stores, hanging by the fountain parks and other amazing plazas.

"We'll find work for us here," Joseph reassured his husband.

"I have a feeling we're in for a trap," Jordan muttered, "Just how can we afford all of this?!"

"We've always managed like how we were able to raise Artemis so far," he reminded him, "Besides, it looks like Artemis is excited to explore around. Shall we?"

"What about the insurance guy? He'll be here soon," Jordan said.

"Leave that to me," Joseph chuckled, "You take Artemis out."

Artemis walked with Jordan towards one of the fountain parks where a bunch of 8, 9, and 10-year olds playing with the sprinklers. A mini train car could be heard by its whistling across the park.

"This is awesome!" Artemis cheered out loud.

Jordan could only smile as he somehow felt hopeful whenever the boy was happy. He carried a bag that contained his mirror inside. No matter what the hardship, Artemis was somehow a sign…

"Hey, look at this dirty kid!" one of the older boys laughed. Jordan's ears perked up as he turned to see Artemis confronting an older kid perhaps about 12 years old.

"What is someone like you doing to our Paradise?!" the bully demanded by grabbing Artemis's t-shirt. Artemis's eyes were widened in fear and silence.

Jordan made his way over as one of the allies of the bully leader pointed out and they fled. Another nearby kid saw what was happening and rushed over to see.

"Artemis are you alright!?" Jordan asked.

"D-daddy I'm scared," Artemis replied, wanting to cry but he couldn't.

"So it's true…" a voice said.

The two turned to see a kid who was partially beaten up. His lip was bleeding and had a small black eye bruise forming. His hair was light brown with nice blue eyes.

"Were you brought here by that man?" asked the young kid.

"Who are you?" Jordan asked, "Where are your parents?"

"I'm Romio, Romio Hayahune," the boy said, "And as for what you call parents, I don't have any. I'm supposed to be in a foster home but everyone there is…well…"

"H-how did you get injured?" Artemis questioned.

"That bully who tried to hurt you…I fought against him earlier today…" Romio said, "He's always provoking new people who come into town."

"Here, let me at least get you to a doctor," Jordan said when his bag vibrated. It was the mirror so he took it out and it was glowing softly. Before any of them could react, the mirror sent wisps of magic to Romio, healing his injuries.

"W-what in the…?!" Romio gasped, feeling the wounds healed, "Is this…?"

"Magic, yeah," Artemis smiled, "It appears that the mirror has sensed pain."

"This mirror…hasn't done anything since…" Jordan muttered before shaking his head, "Never mind."

"So where do you live?" Artemis asked.

"…I'm with the Carter's Foster Home Care but I don't like it there. I feel so alienated…" Romio answered sadly.

"But if it's your only home…" Artemis said.

"I know…but it's just that…there was this boy who is about 5 years old or so…he was adopted by a family. Most of the kids there are younger than me...I realized it then, that no one is gonna take me," the young kid explained.

"Why don't you stay with us for a bit?" Artemis suggested.

"Artemis," Jordan sighed.

"I…I'd love to but I know those people will find out if I am gone…" Romio answered.

"We'll make a day then," Artemis smiled, "Wanna play with the sprinkler?"

"S-Sure!" Romio nodded.

As they played with the water, Jordan sat back down and studied the mirror more closely. A part of his mind told him that it had magic and that he should know better but thanks to the mind scramble as part of the arrangement from someone…he couldn't recall what the mission was.

Making sure no one was watching him, he breathed**_, "Mirror…Mirror on my hand…tell me about this world we are on,"_**

The mirror showed a cloud of dust in the reflection before it revealed words that read:

_World: Duniya  
Continent: Rodinia Magna – Northern Hemisphere  
Country: Aeuropa  
City: Hollywood Heights, Aeuropa City  
Year: 5213 A.D _

_History: Duniya was a world created by a super-powered species called the Mullerians. Their location is kept secret from anyone except a few. Humans were said to devolved from them. The human population grew and developed across the globe but isolated in different regions: Aeuropa, Ignis Magna, Terra Magna, Las Jangwa, Iwamara, Herisia, and more. Legend has it that six powerful beings were sent to this land where their destines crossed and challenged them to a series of battles. _

_In truth, Duniya is a world reborn from its previous planet called Earth where the same said beings were from. To save the past and future, a final battle was fought in the heart of the Mullerians and won. Since then, no one knows what happened to the heroes and enemies…only rumors say that their bodies were found and buried but it is not certain that the DNA matches._

_As for the Mullerians, it was said that they have disappeared after the final battle with their home all in ruins._

_Could these six beings still be alive_, Jordan thought.

* * *

**Veronica's Family Suite**

Two floors below the business department, Veronica returned to her place where her two sons resided in. The older one, Clarion was reading a book while the younger son Blaze was playing a video game.

"Hello mother," Clarion smiled, "How was work?"

"Busy as usual," the mother answered, "And how is that your brother can sit down all day and not even…?"

Blaze got up and stormed his way to his bedroom. Veronica sighed as Clarion said, "Blaze is still having a hard time grieving…"

"I know…and I miss him too," Veronica nodded, "But it's no excuse for him to take his problems out on some fantasy-virtual mess. Soon, the two of you will be going to high school."

"You'll see us graduate and walk the stage?" Clarion asked.

"Of course! When it's my family…I will always find a way," she reassured.

Blaze lied down on his bed as the mother walked in.

"You could've knocked," he growled.

"Blaze…please don't act like this," she sighed, "Ever since father died, I've been giving you and Clarion the best education, the best lunches, and even taking you and your bro to all the mintonette programs."

"And what about Lau-…" Blaze began.

"We already discussed that," Veronica answered sharply, "She's out of the family picture…she disappeared, and the police failed to find her."

Blaze remained silent, so Veronica left the room and the apartment before heading to another location within the building. She went up to the elevator and arrived in a desolated chamber that housed several of the power grids, machines, and other supplies. The mother dug into a closet and found what she needed.

She flipped the pages to show her journey began as a mother who had two sons but was taken into hostage by an evil witch despite honoring the fulfillment. When she escaped her confinement, her family life changed drastically but slowly leading to something horrible…

"I see you found the recipe book," a familiar voice was heard.

She turned to see the witch approaching and replied, "Come into the light so I can see you!"

The cloaked figure stepped in but remained the hood onto its face.

"It's been quite some time since you last visited me in the tip-top of your tower," the witch said, "In exchange for you to climb to power as CEO, a part of your happiness broke off. But it appears that your origin is much more intriguing than I initially thought."

"I ought to know more about myself…before I became a mother," she growled.

"And what will you do once you remember yourself?" the witch asked.

"Do what others least expect," she replied.

"You have power yet you don't know how to take advantage of those who are not like this town…you push people away which gives them an opportunity to plot against you. If you keep people in, you might have a better audience who will obey the ways of this town," the witch hissed, "You even failed to get that man to sell out his bar…again."

"Don't you forget…you are MY prisoner**_,"_** she said, "This tower is specially designed to seal your magic."

**_"Really?! Because the way I SEE IT is that we are both shackled in our own way. And the bigger question is…who the actual prisoner is…and to whom?"_** the witch replied.

"…This opportunity here…is a peace offering, a courtesy, consider it a compromise," Veronica answered.

"You may gentrify this town, you may succeed in wiping out in all those street rats you call them, you may even get your memories back and your revenge but…

The CEO stared at him sharply, being fearless on what was going to be the catch.

**_"Then you'll have to deal with me."_**

Veronica closed the book and placed it in her purse before leaving the room and the witch behind.

**_~Next Water Time: Episode 2: Fresh New Members!~_**


	5. Story 2: Ignition Restart II

**~Episode 2: Fresh New Members!~**

**Youthful Oasis Swim Club, Paradise Elementary School**

Artemis stood to the side as the manager made the announcement to the swim members on a new student enrolling the club.

"H-hi everyone, my name is Artemis Patterson and I have swum for as long as I can remember. Pleased to be working with you all!" he bowed as the students clapped their hands in response.

"Now then, Romio, would you kindly show Artemis around and explain our regimen?" the manager asked.

"Of course, Ms. Bel," he said.

"Everyone else, to your stations and resume your laps you were assigned to!" Ms. Bel called out.

Romio led Artemis a tour of the pool, the lockers, and the office, and explained how he is working as a representative for the class.

"I didn't realize you were a swimmer, let alone be at this school," Artemis said.

"Hehe, I guess it's a small world," he chuckled, "I've always liked swimming but I would hate to compete myself against the world. Now that I think about it, aren't we in the same Social Studies class?"

"I believe so," Artemis shrugged.

"Yeah. I think I remember you in there, you were so fascinated by our world history," Romio added.

"E-ehhh…I guess I just like stories and stuff," Artemis answered, rubbing the back of his own head.

"It's alright. We all have our own perks," he said, "So you'll be starting tomorrow with us. Do you have any other questions?"

"D-does this school enter in competitions?" Artemis asked.

"We haven't had competitions for the last 3 years or so," Romio replied, "Then again…it's Hollywood Heights…they only care for the rich."

"I see…" Artemis said, "Maybe we can change that!"

"I hope we do…but we have a very low fighting chance," Romio answered sadly.

As the year passed by, Artemis joined the swim club and practiced his freestyle while figuring out what would be his second style. The backstroke was too slow for him…and even the breaststroke was sometimes awkward. To his surprise, he seemed more comfortable with butterfly.

His fathers were both working at least, making their ends meet every month. It wasn't always easy but with some connections and help from Ben, they managed to succeed very well. Sometimes, Artemis would wonder if it's all too good to be true.

_And then…_

* * *

**History Lesson: Legends of Heroes**

The teacher was writing a set of runes on the blackboard in symbols that hardly anyone recognized. It was said that these symbols were names of a group of heroes that descended from another world. The textbook had vague images of the people but it was barely visible to see what they were.

"Thus, after what seemed to be a series of wars and apocalypses over 50 years ago…their names were forgotten yet we have carried their symbols and runes to our generation," the teacher explained.

Artemis raised his hand and asked, "Was there an exact number of people in this group?"

"It was said that there were six people based on the list here…but we suspect they had allies, family, and friends," the teacher replied.

Romio could see how fascinated Artemis really was. It was as if there was a giant puzzle in this world that needed to be put together. Artemis turned the page and saw what appeared to be a list of events that were recorded including places involved: Aeuropa City, Herisia, Terra Magna, Ignis Magna, Chirottori, Las Jangwa, Lha'li, Neo Tabuk…

"What we do know is that Hollywood Heights was once a location of the Aeuropa Casino and it was bombed down during one of these incidents," the teacher continued the lecture, "Many years later, a rich entrepreneur managed to restart the city and developed several neighborhoods. Led by the current CEO, Veronica Smith, she is known to have strict regulations in keeping this part of the town safe from any street rats."

One student began to tear up silently as he was called a street rat. Romio noticed who it was but kept himself quiet.

_Then again, is this town really a paradise? Or are we heading for a new war?_ he thought, looking at the list of names he kept in a crumbled paper in his pocket. The names matched the description of the runes but he was forced to not reveal this secret to anyone.

_And you Artemis…who are you really?_

* * *

**Days Later: Smith's Development & Community Design: V's Tower HQ**

Veronica looked over the reports from Devon and Ben before signing her approval signatures.

"Excellent," she answered, "The new condos will begin construction next month and we'll have a designer to review everything."

"Our job in Hollywood Heights is to preserve the peace and prosperity as you stated," Devon recalled his lesson.

"We will see to the plans," Ben reassured.

"Good, I will talk to you both later," she dismissed them just as the telephone rang. She answered it. After a few moments, she got up from her suite office and stormed her way out the door, grabbing her purse and jacket.

* * *

**Aeuropa Campus Museum, Downtown Aeuropa City**

Artemis, Romio, and a bunch of other students were on a fieldtrip that was designed to enhance their lessons. The museum had an exhibit containing the rubble from the casino, a set of clothes left behind from the Chirottori region, and even a model of the monstrous beasts including a Chiropteran, Megascolide, Acephalipteran, and the Nachas.

While the students were either scared or in awe to see the monsters, Artemis was too occupied on the clothes. He could sense some great value of warriors that once wore them.

_A blue-gold scarf…a green cloak...a long riffle with a purple vest…a veil made of bright colors…shiny armor and a helmet of a dragon…and a black cloak with white toga-like outfit_, he thought, _these clothes are in perfect condition as if they just took them off…_

The teacher beckoned the students to follow the tour guide and they left Artemis unknowingly behind. Riku tried to keep an eye of the departing group and Artemis as if he was expecting something.

The child was about to turn when his hand began to glow, resonating with the clothes. Romio gasped in fear of the alarms but nothing could be heard.

_I-is he waking up_, the older Romio's voice gasped to his mind, _Shizuru and the others must_...

The glass casing that held the clothes dissolved away and the outfits took on a life of their own. With that, the alarms rang off. Romio hid behind a display as he expected the guards to arrive in and arrest Artemis. Sure enough, they arrived but then dispersed when they saw no one at the display where the clothes disappeared from.

_H-his magic is keeping him invisible_, he observed.

The rest of the class were evacuating from the building along with two other school field trips followed suit. Blaze was also present with his class from another school when he turned to see his mother arriving on scene.

"Did you do something!?" she asked.

"NO!" he cried out back, "It's not me!"

"Blaze didn't do anything. The thief was coming from another room!" a classmate agreed.

"M-Ms. Smith!" one of the teachers gasped, "Why are you here? No one called you."

"Really. Then tell me why how I was here in the first place?" she asked in an authorial tone.

"It's because we are here to stop you!" a voice shouted (that only Veronica and Blaze could hear).

The two turned to see what appeared to be the young boy along with the Six Warriors (emptied with floating clothes) from the display case. Each of them were, reading their weapons against her. Veronica's eyes widened in horror at the madness while the teacher asked her if something was wrong.

Then it began to come back…at first she didn't recognized the outfits but the facial expression from Artemis triggered her mind...leading back to a certain day when plans of revenge were about to proceed but those meddling heroes took it away.

**_"M-Magic Six…"_** she growled in a silent response.

_N-No, this can't be happening now_, Blaze thought, _my plan for revenge is making progress…I can't let the curse be lifted now! If she wakes up before my revenge is complete…_

"M-Ms. Smith?" the teacher asked, "B-Blaze?"

Veronica grabbed her son and they both fled from the scene. Artemis reappeared to his classmates but in a semi-conscious state. An ambulance took him to the hospital.

* * *

"My, my…someone had a bad day," the witch chuckled as Veronica and Blaze entered to the chamber.

"Why are museum's clothes the **_CONSTANT BANE OF MY EXISTENCE?!_**" she snapped.

"W-what are you talking about mother?" Blaze asked, keeping the charade.

"Today was a test…" she replied, "One of which did not go as planned but…thanks to that boy…I was able to get those clothes and placed replicas in the museum. They will be shipped for a miraculous project that will also be your demise…"

"And the boy among those clothes…?" Veronica asked.

"It's kinda ironic when your child is the one who harassed that street rat…I was hoping for a fight but of course today's not the day," the witch answered.

"What did you do Blaze?" the mother asked.

"Just keeping our city streets safe," Blaze nervously smiled.

Veronica turned to the witch with her eyes getting angrier by the minute. She couldn't bear to understand all the nonsense, but one thing was clear…she needed to stir up some serious trouble to get rid of the potential heroes.

"I swear…you will not be playing us like toys!" Veronica growled, "TELL ME…WHERE ARE THEY!? WHERE DID THE MAGIC SIX GO AFTER THE UNDERWORLD!?"

"Alright, I'll tell you after you go to sleep and forget about today…" the witch said as she flicked his hand at the mother, knocking her down to the ground. Blaze stared at all of this while still holding his emotions tight and hidden.

"It's alright now, you can breathe," the witch replied.

"I see your magic came back," Blaze said, crossing his arms.

"It's thanks to you for smuggling the tea in with the leaves I requested you to find," the witch answered, "But now I need you to find those clothes so I can burn them. They must not be given to the heroes."

"Of course. And what will happen to mother?" Blaze asked.

"She'll wake up, but her fake memories will occupy her to continue her work," the witch shrugged.

Blaze nodded and was about to leave the room, but the witch prompted him to wait.

"Before I forget, you might want these glasses," she added as the witch handed him a pair of his original designer's glasses.

"Well, now that I am whole again…we have a lot of business to finish here," Blaze answered, "When she wakes up, tell her that you broke your brew and that you want some more…we'll play the charade out till the end."

"My sweet Blaze…you know I'll do just that," Verrado smiled.

"Good. _And don't call me Blaze…"_ the boy said, turning around before turning his head to the side, "**_It's Kei Tsukishima."_**

* * *

**Aeuropa General Hospital**

Joseph and Jordan sat down by Artemis's bed as the child finally woke up. The two fathers were in relieved as the nurse walked in for a checkup.

"Artemis!" Joseph sighed in relief.

"F-father…daddy," he breathed.

"We're so glad you're awake. You had us all worried today after the incident at the museum!" Jordan answered.

"T-the museum…" he muttered, "I-I don't remember…?"

"He's probably having some amnesia," the nurse suggested.

"That's exactly what he is having," a voice replied.

They turned to see Ben walking in.

"B-Ben!" Joseph gasped.

"It's alright, I'll take care of this," he replied, "I'll pay for the hospital fee as well. You three just get home safely, alright?"

"We really owe a lot to you," Jordan answered.

"No need," Ben smiled, "I've got loads of my own. A simple hospital bill is nothing. Anyway, you folks have a great night."

* * *

**Ben's Apartment Suite:**

The man returned to his suite as the pile of clothes from the museum appeared to the living room. It was all thanks to his secret magic that he gave to Artemis earlier without having him realizing it. After all…Artemis was something beyond anything this world has yet to see.

"These clothes…will soon be delivered to them…" he muttered raising his hand to the mirror as the Arabian/warrior clothes of the Magic Six floated their way to the mirror before vanishing through. The five of them went through but one of them remained behind. Confused, he tried it again but alas it didn't work.

"I guess I shall seal it away for now."

* * *

**The Smith's Apartment Suite:**

The awakened Kei returned to the apartment to see his brother Clarion/Akiteru studying. It was clear that the brother was not yet awake, nor did he intend to plan him to wake up.

Clarion turned, "What's up Blaze?"

"Nothing. Where's mom?" Kei asked.

"Probably still at work," Clarion shrugged, "You need something?"

"No," Kei replied, walking past him and heading to his room while recalling the conversation between him and the witch.

_"She is the same as you…both of you were killed by the heroes in different generations," Verrado replied, "But as fate would have it…the Final Battle and that infamous swing of the god of death brought you all back…well almost. Then you and I we teamed up to stir trouble around both your mother, the heroes, and other bystanders to ensure that they will not intervene with our curse."_

"What twisted wheel of fate among us ever since our rebirth from the Underworld," he muttered, looking at the book that he snatched from his mother after he left the witch behind.

_Mother_, he thought to himself, _you're gonna suffer for all of this…soon you'll see…after what you've done…_

* * *

**Nightfall: Carter's Foster Home Care**

Romio sat alone on his bed as the other kids were asleep. After seeing what Artemis did at the museum, it was clear that this was a sign. He didn't want to play this façade, but it was too early to act.

_Something should be done, and I know who can do it_, he thought before he got out of bed crawled beneath it to find a false bottom with a metal handle. Silently opening it, Romio found the bottle containing the serum of purple color with carbonated effects.

He was tempted to drink it, but the same subconscious reminder forced him not to. With a sigh, he put it back. Before getting to bed, he heard voices from the hallway. Romio silently tip-toed the room before reaching the doorway and silently opened.

"This will be your room Kirishima," the director explained.

"Wait! I'm supposed to be…" the young voice replied.

"We have assigned you and Shiina to be in different rooms," the adult replied, "You two are not siblings."

"We're cousins!" the voice replied.

"Not with those last names you're not," the adult answered.

Romio's eyes widened as he watched the two boys being separated from each other. He quickly climbed back to his bed to not make any suspicion.

* * *

**Weeks Later: Youthful Oasis Swim Club**

Artemis reached his hand to the wall before gasping for breath and taking off his cap. Ayumu smiled at his time and congratulated him on his recent progress.

"Hey Arty, I want you to meet a fellow classmate of mine who is also in this swim club. He has looked up to you and wanted to say hi," Romio smiled.

"W-who?" he began.

"Y-You're Artemis?!" the kid gasped as he was signaled by Romio to approach.

"Yes?" Artemis replied.

"Hi! I'm Shizuru…Shizuru Isurugi," he bowed, "I swim the backstroke but I'm also good at the freestyle. Anyway, we were curious to know if you wanted to join us for a medley relay! You wanna give it a shot?"

"I…I don't know," Artemis turned his head.

"Is something wrong?" Romio asked.

"I'm not used to dealing with people like that," he blushed.

"Nonsense! You've been a great member to our club," Ayumu smiled, "It's just that it would be good for you to meet other people! Perhaps you might find your answer to what you are looking for."

Artemis turned his head to the last statement as he reflected on the history lesson (even though they had a test on that and moved onto a new subject).

"Then…could you help me?" Artemis asked.

"With what?" Ayumu questioned his reply.

"This may sound crazy but…when I swim…I sometimes get lost in visions of wonders…kinda like as if I am no longer swimming but like daydreaming…" he explained.

"Well my father is a Psychologist…maybe he can help," she suggested.

Artemis smiled in reply, "Alright. I'll swim with you and you can help me find the answer I seek."

Ayumu's father listened to Artemis's story as well as Jordan and Joseph's connection to the child. While he is not a psychiatrist, he simply suggested that Artemis was a special kid and that he had a great vision of his future.

From there, the four bonded to start their team as they obtained one more person to make a medley relay. On the day of the competition, the families watched in anticipation and awe as Artemis's team won and received medals and a trophy.

* * *

**Judd's Tavern**

Shiloh wiped the countertop of the bar clean and wringed out the wash rag. Today was another busy day. The door opened up as he looked up to see a young kid walking into the tavern alone.

"You're too young kid," Shiloh answered.

"Oh. I'm not here for a drink," the kid said, "I wasn't sure if my mother stopped by here again or not."

"Wait…" he replied, "Are you…?"

"Yes, Veronica is my mother. Let me guess, she never spoke of me?" Kei asked.

"She has mentioned of Clarion…" he muttered.

"Of course, mother's favorite child," Kei sighed.

"Look, as much as I want to help…I don't have time to deal with family problems or those of underage at my bar," Shiloh replied.

_He's not awake_, Kei thought, _I wasted time here. Unless…_

"Are you gonna go or do I have to call the cops?" Shiloh asked.

"I'll go…mother would probably demolish this place anytime and I'm not in the mood to be buried alive," he grumbled as he headed out.

* * *

**The Patterson Family Apartment**

As the fathers tucked their champion to bed, Joseph and Jordan clanged their glasses together. It was indeed a celebration.

"Soooooo darling…are you up for something?" Joseph flirted.

"Like what?" Jordan replied.

"You know we haven't had this much fun since…?" he began as he tried to massage his partner's shoulders from behind.

"Joseph…I need a moment," Jordan answered.

"Eh?" Joseph was confused by the response.

"The bathroom," he chuckled.

"Oh," Joseph had a sweat drop moment.

Jordan arrived in the bathroom where he kept the handheld mirror. He felt it resonating again and held it to his heart.

"What are you telling me?" he muttered.

The mirror flashed into his mind as Jordan's head was lost in visions. His eyes shifted from a calm and confused manner to a more serious and realization with epiphany…as if…

"Julius…?" he muttered, "Why did you awake me now? Is Artemis in danger?"

"Tekela," the answer replied in the mirror, "I had foreseen a vision…a premonition…and you must listen to my instructions carefully if we are going to protect the child…"

**_~Next Water Time: Episode 3: Message from the Shadows!~_**


	6. Story 2: Ignition Restart III

**~Episode 3: Message from the Shadows!~**

**Crystal Iwatobi, Idaina Magna  
Some time after Pandora x Dodecadron wedding from Gen 2.0 Finale...  
**

The mega city of Crystal Iwatobi continued to flourish as Iwatobi Crystal High and Samezuka Stellar Academy began their new school year. Kazami and Shionezaki High Schools were finally built to become part of the Tottori Quad High School District Series.

While it was hard to say how much time passed, the heroes were all grown up yet still youthful each day. Rin and Gou visited their parents where they shared all their happy times back in the living world. The Tachibana family did the same and so did the others.

The afterlife in this realm is hard to really describe as anyone can appear a toddler to one person yet fully grown to another. The flow of time is almost non-existent yet there is a sunrise, morning, noon, afternoon, sunset, and so forth. Seasons do also exist and one's perspective can be altered just by the mood and what one wanted.

* * *

Rasputin sat down on the grassy fields with his beloved grown children Matryona and Varvara. As part of the price, he is required to meet and exchange with the victim whom he wronged all those years ago. This spot allowed safe passage from the children. They rotated on a somewhat monthly like schedule.

Finally, the woman named Elise arrived at the scene. The two young adults joined up with their biological mother before waving goodbye to Rasputin.

"Are you alright?" Varvara asked.

"Of course, I'm happy to see the two of you," Elise smiled.

Matryona of course could see through her that she wasn't but he kept his mouth shut. He knew that deep down Elise was traumatized by Rasputin let alone Pandora. Despite living in a pure afterlife paradise, Elise's mortal life was already in ruins. She was taken advantaged by Rasputin (under Pandora's control) and the pregnancy accelerated before being violently killed and the fertilized cocoons removed. And now here they are...as adults in front of her own eyes.

"Mother, are you sure you're happy?" Matryona added.

"Brother," Varvara sighed.

"I'm not 100% happy but I am feeling happy to be living as far away from the city as much as possible," Elise answered, "However, you are both precious to me."

"Perhaps your story isn't over…maybe you can start over," Matryona suggested, "Maybe it can give you a purporse and..."

"It's too risky…the Magic Six already did that and narrowly destroyed all of us," Varvara said, "Not to mention what happened to our uncle…"

"Alex?" Elise asked, confused as she recalled how sincere and nice he was to protect them for her back during the dark ages on Duniya.

The two stared at each other before Varvara added, "It's a long story. I know you want nothing to do with them but…"

* * *

**Le Fay Manor**

Pandora stared at the family photo in silence. It didn't feel so long ago when everything was happy with her family. She recalled when they tried to invite Elise, she declined.

She once asked her father Cosmos back in Bota Duniya if there was ever a time when Elise would recover from the trauma. He replied that it depends on what she chooses for the future. The victim could end up either unforgiving and miserable or…stronger in pure of heart.

The doorbell rang. Pandora walked up to answer it and gasped to see who was here…

"E-Elise?!" she gasped, realizing the irony taking place.

"Good day," the other woman answered with a bit of a stern mixed with uncertainty, "Your grandkids told me about your journey and the pain you've endured. And now a new quest has unfolded."

"I sent my husband back to the mortal realms to find our…" Pandora began.

"About that…" Elise answered, "I have a proposition that I want you to consider. I'm not expecting an answer today but soon."

"Eh?" Pandora looked at her in slight confusion. She had not felt this uncomfortable for a while but yet…

* * *

**Back in Aeuropa City**

Artemis, Romio, and Shizuru along with a fourth member competed a medley relay and won. It was a close victory for their team during the competition but in the end, the trophy and medals were theirs. Jordan and Joseph were especially happy for their "son" while the former kept the secrets of the past to himself. There will be a day to reveal it all, just not now…

Eventually, the four friends were separated by the graduation of their elementary school. Romio was adopted into a family finally while Shizuru's father obtained a new job to the southern portion of Aeuropa City. Ayumu and her folks were also moving towards the coastline area.

As for Artemis and his fathers, they were approached by Ben that one of Veronica's spies watched them during the swim race and were trying to exploit the family for some greater plot. He advised them to leave out of Hollywood Heights despite their protest. He gave them another portion of his own secret money to get them settled to a new school and neighborhood in North Aeuropa.

_"It's just as good as Hollywood Heights, only less posh and more down to earth,"_ he reminded them.

The Patterson family made it to North Aeuropa and just like what Ben told them, the neighborhood was vast with lots of housing in new and recently constructed condition. Hollywood Heights was about 6 miles south of their new location.

Artemis looked at the photo of himself and his friends during the relay. He was saddened to move on from here but his parents knew it was for the best to escape Veronica's clutches. Ben also managed to get the parents some new jobs as well.

"You guys ready?" Joseph asked.

"Of course," Jordan smiled.

The young teen nodded as the car finally stopped at their new home. The house was good size of at least 2,400 square feet, plenty of room for a two-story. A new project is about to begin…

* * *

**Northern Spectral Middle School**

Artemis sat alone by his desk as he was now a 7th grader. He hoped that at least one of his friends was with him but none were enrolled here. It was still 20 minutes till the morning routine could begin.

"Hey, you wanna join the swim club?!" a young boy asked to another student.

"I…I'm afraid I already signed up for the art club…" the student replied.

Artemis sighed and tried to ignore all the clamor as he looked at the club list. Unlike elementary school, it was mandatory to participate in a club. He could do swimming again but a part of him realized that everyone else has moved on from Hollywood Heights. The area was already 89% gentrified and more people were being separate because of financial demands.

The same loud student made his way to Artemis and gasped when he saw his name.

"Y-you're Artemis! Oh my god it's you! I've heard about your relay back in elementary school!" the boy said, "We'd be honored that an experienced swimmer like you to join our team, the Sherwood Swim Club!"

"No thanks," Artemis said.

"EEHHHH!?" the kid cried out, "How can you say no so flatly!? You have a lot of potential and…"

"It's because clubs these days are stupid," a voice replied.

The two turned to see another young boy with a bit of an attitude as the person continued, "Mandatory or not, I for sure will not be going to a swim club."

"Oi!" the first kid answered, "You don't have any idea who this person is, do you!? HUH?!"

"Back off!" the other boy snapped, "If he says he doesn't want to join, what's the point of convincing him!?"

"The middle school team is going to lose several members because they're in their final year here!" replied the first boy.

"Oh boo-hoo," the second one rolled his eyes, "Look for someone else!"

Artemis sighed and said, "If there's something I can do…I'll do it."

The first kid eye's sparkled a little in excitement, "We're at the back of the school! Take this flyer!"

He handed it over to Artemis and introduced himself, "I'm Misaki Kuramoto."

* * *

**Smith's Development & Community Design: V's Tower HQ, Hollywood Heights**

Veronica walked into the room where Verrado sat on the floor in her chains. She had sensed some unusual activity form the security cameras but of course someone is trying to outwit her. Regardless, she made her way towards the witch.

"You've been having visitors," Veronica said.

"Excuse me?" Verrado asked.

"Don't play with me, someone has been in your room here," the CEO replied, "Tell me who it is."

"Even if I did tell you, there's no way you would be able to stop them," the witch answered.

Furious, Veronica yanked on the chain, pulling the witch closer to her, _**"For sure if you don't tell me…I will certainly not let you feel the warm light of day…again!"**_

The witch shook her head, "Regardless of what you can do…I'm still…"

"I know," Veronica replied, taking out a small wrist cuff, "That's why with this, you won't be doing anymore magic. I am getting tired of your meddling here."

"You bitch!" she growled as she slapped it on her, "You might be the CEO of this place, but you do realize who you are dealing with!"

"Oh please, that cuff is designed to not let any witches like you to do anything that is against the company's policy" she answered, "Now then…I have done some digging and discovered an interesting family who just recently left the city. One of them I noticed has some latent power that could rival even myself."

"My witches and I have done something to ensure that he will never reunite with his family," the witch answered, "Yet his father is here in town but can't for the life…pick up his aura."

"As long as the curse I enacted remains intact," Veronica replied, "I have the city in my hands and there will be no family reunions. Once I get my hands filled, I will expand my empire to those other cities and claim every last breathing entity as my own."

_We'll see how long you truly last_, Verrado thought, _you are certainly a villain but you and the heroes will only thwart my plans…_

* * *

Downstairs, Blaze was alone in his room as he managed to sneak off the book that his mother was hiding. Despite being awake since the enacting of the curse, he had to research some past information before ending up here in this world.

Flipping the pages, he saw a few illustrations that showed the entire family together before a famine struck their home. The mother made a paid a tragic price to allow him, his brother, and the father to flourish on their own. Eventually the father remarried another woman with a daughter in hand. Blaze gasped as he didn't know about this part of the story…turning the page to see what happened to the other mother…

_So…you really took away what was precious of mine_, Blaze thought darkly, y_ou may have got your family back then but guess what, I know the truth now and I'll never be standing with you! I'll just take away what's precious of you and you'll suffer like I did!_

* * *

**Flashback: Long Ago…Planet Duniya**

The horses neighed loudly through the dark, thundering background as they raced across the dirty road. A well-sized carriage housed a father and two young boys tending to him.

Finally, the rider pulled on the reigns to calm the horses down at the destination.

"Why'd you stop Abigail?" Takahiro cried out.

The mother removed the hood of her cloak and smiled, "Because I found something for all of us to eat."

"I'm so sorry the burden is in your hands to look after us all," her husband breathed heavily.

"You are a brilliant tailor Taka. Once I mend you back to health, we'll have the life we've always dreamed of…**_our family_**," she answered.

The youngest son of about 4 years old turned to her and asked, "Are you sure it's safe to go in there mama?"

"The lanterns will connect us. You'll see mines over there…and yours will guide to me back here," Abigail said, brushing her hand on her children's cheeks, **_"Remember. For my family, I'll always find a way."_**

With that, she got off and walked her way over to the fields of some farm. It wasn't as big like the ones back in her village, but she was grateful that it was blooming enough for some food. Their village was suffering an abnormal drought to the point that many families were scattering out to find food from elsewhere.

Abigail located a bunch of different fruits and vegetables including tomatoes, lettuce, corn, and peppers. She started to grab a few when something popped in front of her. Abigail gasped in a short scream before falling back on the ground. The witch analyzed what this young woman took in the sack.

"Who dares to trespass my beloved garden?" Verrado asked.

"I apologize for stealing some food, but I won't apologize for helping my family!" Abigail panicked, "My husband is sick, and my kids haven't eaten for 2 days!"

"It's very rare for someone like you to enter this place. An ordinary human wouldn't have seen this magical garden at all," Verrado, "And here you are…selflessly risking your life…for some radishes?"

"I meant no disrespect," Abigail answered calmly, "If you want me to work as payment for the food…"

Verrado ignored that and asked, "If your family is your be all and end all, what would you sacrifice to give them a better life?"

**_"I'll do anything!"_** Abigail said.

The witch smiled, **_"Anything is something I can work with. We have a deal!"_**

Abigail watched the witch taking out a small glass vial filled with some dark dust. The witch threw it at her as magic entangled her legs and wrists before being teleported into what looked like a prison tower. She opened her eyes to see herself in what looked like a nice mini cottage, but she began to worry.

She rushed up to the wooden windows to push open and saw herself high above to the point she could see clouds. Her mind screamed.

_"There is no way out of this tower,"_ Verrado said.

"I…I never agreed to this!" Abigail cried out.

"Oh, but you did…**_you swore to pay any price for your family's happiness_****_._** And _there's a distinct difference between theirs and yours…_" the witch hissed, walking in circle around her.

"They'll come for me…" she replied.

**_"But they'll never find you,"_** Verrado answered.

Terrified, Abigail rushed to the window to scream out, "TAAAKAAAAAA! HEEEELLLLPPPP!"

She panted after that first scream before continuing, **_"AKITTEERRRUUU! KEI-CHAAANNN! HEEEELLLLLPPP MEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"_**

* * *

**Present Time: Sherwood Swim Club**

"Welcome Artemis, to our Sherwood Swim Cub!" Kaoru Natsume shook hands with him as Artemis kept a silent expression.

"Thank you," he replied, "But I'm afraid that I might not be joining this year."

"Oh?" Kaoru asked, "I'm guessing my friend tried to guilt you in?"

"Misaki, right?" Artemis answered.

"Hehe," the captain blushed lightly before continuing, "We've heard about you back in Hollywood Heights. Your reputation proceeds you. How did you end up here?"

"We were kicked out…kinda," Artemis said, making sure no one else was eavesdropping, "That neighborhood is hiding something…I can sense it."

"No doubt it is," Kaoru sighed, "My family was also kicked out. But that didn't stop me from swimming…"

"The truth is…when I did the medley relay with my teammates, we were so close…like brothers. Until that company of Smith's is what separated us…that's why I don't wanna swim. Not without them…"

"I see…so, you too…were also thrown away from that corrupted paradise," Kaoru said, "Look. That shouldn't be your excuse to stop swimming. Maybe if you join us…you might find them again in different teams."

The two heard a loud argument coming from the other side as Misaki dragged the blond boy from earlier back in class.

"Ah, so it's you…Aoba Usami, right?" Kaoru asked.

"Y-Yeah?" he grunted.

"My apologies to the behavior of my swim member, I'm gonna push him an extra mile today but we do appreciate more members. Have you swum before?" Kaoru smiled while Misaki blushed madly on his comeuppance.

"I was…but didn't get the results I desired," Aoba said.

"Our swim team's motto always believes in a second chance," Kaoru nodded, "I think you three will be a very special asset to our cause."

"Alright, fine," Aoba answered.

After the Patterson family had their dinner and Artemis went to his room, Jordan took out the mirror again and went to an isolated space in the house. Joseph was out riding his bike for an evening exercise.

"Mirror…tell me who I really am…I need to know my past," he chanted.

The mirror flashed finally, revealing the past of Atlantis…both its early reign, the downfall, the apocalypse of Olympia Magna as well as the journey of the Iwasame Senshi. From there it showed his personal life, realizing that…

_Of course_, he thought, _I was born a girl…then I went to join the Water Knights with so many guys…in fear that they'd find out I…I asked the family to 'change me'._

The image showed a young female teen undergoing some transformation process inside the Heart of Atlantis. However, the results of the test were not fully completed as anticipated. The crystal changed her breast into a men's muscled chest but had some side effects of lactation. There was also the fact that a certain body part wasn't completely perfect but to Joseph it wouldn't matter as he had ridden on it whenever they mated. It was a long-buried secret between his family and the royal family yet the people of the Water Knights welcomed him as if there was no tension or prejudice.

However, Jordan didn't realize that Joseph was back and watched this from the doorway. While he was a bit of a shocked, his love for the partner didn't changed. Joseph walked to the bedroom and waited for Jordan to return.

* * *

**Months Later: School Trip to Iwamara**

Time passed by and Artemis took more history courses while agreeing to continue his swimming era. The textbooks revealed the initials of the "Magic Six": HN, MT, RM, AM, NH, and RR. These mysteries continued to spark interest in the young boy. When it was announced that the class were going to Iwamara, Artemis was beyond thrilled.

It also happened that there was a swim team there that his club was going to attend to go there also. When the class trip arrived, Artemis walked with Aoba out from the bus.

"So you really are gonnna stay on the team?" Artemis asked.

"Not that I got much else of a choice," Aoba said, "But I must say that we ended up here at this ghastly place."

"I know you're not in my history class…" Artemis replied, "That means…are you from the honors group?"

"I-I guess," Aoba rubbed the back of his head, "My father was a historian and studied some archeology."

"That's cool! Come on, let's go look around," Artemis said, "We'll be scheduled for swimming later today so let's enjoy ourselves!"

* * *

Artemis, Aoba and their classmates toured through several locations that day while Misaki and Kaoru along with the rest of the swim team were exercising on the coastline area along with several Iwamara swimmers. Aoba and Artemis were expected to join later after their field trip but it was quite odd to see that two field trips were happening at once.

Curious, Misaki asked a fellow swimmer from that team about how it was founded after that individual returned from the regular field trip.

"It was launched by a group of young guys, they founded it and selected members before they disappeared," one of the guys explained, "We don't know where they went but it was rumored that they were magical…"

"There's a temple here, right?" Misaki asked.

"Y-yes but it's been blocked off by the park rangers," the other guy answered, "Unless your family paid an extra excursion fee…"

"Oi! Misaki!" Kaoru called out, "Focus on training!"

Before Misaki could reply, the water began to recede a little. Everyone at the training site stared sharply as if…

**_BOOM!_**

The ground began to shake a little as a beam of light exploded out from the forest. The swim teams panicked and departed from the area while several trees began to tumble over as the water receded back towards the horizon.

* * *

**The Suiei Temple**

As a special exclusive part of the trip, the a few of the classmates with Artemis were given a tour near the site of the Suiei Temple. However, that's when it all begins…

The students gasped in awe and terror as Artemis's body glowed. The teachers and the rangers tried to stop him from reaching the temple but a force field prevented them from doing so.

"Wh-what's going to happen to Artemis!?" Aoba gasped.

"T-The temple…" the park ranger analyzed, "It's as if it's…welcoming him!?"

Artemis turned his head to the crowd as a deep voice spoke, **_"Do not fear…the time of awakening is upon us…"_**

The young boy stepped up the stairs slowly, entering the temple as the six statues of the Suiei Gods flared to life in such power. At the center was a marble table with a book on top. Artemis touched the book…

**_WHHHHOOOOOOSSSSSSSHHHHHHH!_**

The world around his vision spun, showing him a series of scenes of the Magic Six being born on different regions of this planet, their reunion in Iwamara after a fierce and bloody battle as well as their journey to another land.

"That book is the key to your power…" a voice spoke.

Artemis turned to see a man much older than him but still youthful in physique. His hair was silver-white and wore a simple fantasy robe and armor mixed of different cultures blended together. A pair of angel wings were on its back and a crown was silver with a rainbow-colored set of gems.

A long staff with a headpiece of black and white designs marked with star-shaped crystals.

"W-who are you?" Artemis asked.

_"I am Suiei Cosmos…the Senshi of All,"_ the answer replied, _"Born from the hearts of heroes…and crafted by true love who were once victims of my enemy…Chaos."_

"W-wait…are you saying…!?" Artemis gasped.

_"You are very clever…Artemis Le Fay…you remember the parents who bore you…the parents who will one day you will reunite. However, the future remains cloudy. Yet, one day…a miraculous resurrection will take place…you will journey and continue the mission of those heroes…Haruka Nanase, Rin Matsuoka, Nagisa Hazuki, Makoto Tachibana, Rei Ryugazaki, Sousuke Yamazaki, Momotarou Mikoshiba, Aiichirou Nitori, and their allies. The book you touched is only a fragment of the whole picture,"_ Suiei Cosmos explained.

"You almost look like me? Are we…" he began.

_"One day…if you keep yourself in the light, you will find yourself whole once more and when you do, our existence will become one,"_ the senshi explained.

"I wanna see mommy and daddy again," Artemis answered tearfully, "Please tell me they're alright!"

_"As I said, you will reunite…but for now, you must return to your normal life until they come for you. The senshi who will help you awaken your true powers that I carry,"_ Suiei Cosmos added.

"T-Thank you for the names of those people," Artemis tearfully answered before closing his eyes.

Cosmos used its magic to send Artemis back to reality as well as concealing those memories once more. The Suiei Senshi could only pray that the future will continue and that after all is said and done…the story will no longer be bounded by any curse or master…

* * *

**Back in Hollywood Heights:**

As Blaze and Clarion were sleeping for the night, Veronica silently opened the door to check for something. However, something else caught her eye and gasped silently to see the "book" right by Blaze's feet.

Once she reclaimed it, she angrily made her way upstairs to where she imprisoned Ben.

"Why is this book in my son's hands?" she confronted.

"You took it from this room. Did you think he was only curious?" Verrado asked.

"Stop playing the innocent card," Veronica answered.

"Look. I have never met your children," Verrado said, "Well except when you had that accident . But even then, I have never had the chance to meet their acquaintance.

"STOP LYING! I swear to you…if you even try to listen to Blaze…" Veronica threatened.

"My, my, did you forget how this deal was all played out?" Verrado added, standing up on her feet while being in chains, "You do realize that threatening me will do you no good. _After all…you're the one who should be freaking out after what happened to your family all those years ago…I only came into your life in hopes to ensure that the curse doesn't break._

_"Because if it does…a lot of people will be dead…including your son Akiteru. Many people will die! And this time, there won't be any last breath…"_

**END OF SHORT STORY #2**

* * *

~The Adventure Continues in Short Story #3: **_High Speed! A Promised Reunion – STAGE II – _**

In the Eternal Paradise, Ikuya and Asahi return from their mission in Generation 2.0 but learn that the rise of Generation 3.0 may be sooner than they anticipated.

In flashbacks to their untold stories on Suiei!Earth, the past is FINALLY revealed in how the High Speed! Middle School gang ties to the Iwatobi and Rin's stories _after the original Gen 1.0 fanfic of_ **_High Speed! A Promised Reunion!_**


	7. Story 3: High Speed! Stage 2 Part I

**Story 3: High Speed! A Promised Reunion – STAGE II – **

In the Eternal Paradise, Ikuya and Asahi return from their mission in Generation 2.0 but learn that the rise of Generation 3.0 may be sooner than they anticipated.

In flashbacks to their untold stories on Suiei!Earth, the past is FINALLY revealed in how the High Speed! Middle School gang ties to the Iwatobi and Rin's stories _after the original Gen 1.0 fanfic of_ **_High Speed! A Promised Reunion!_**

* * *

**~Segment 1: The Past~**

The spring cherry blossoms gleam with a fresh new day for the village of Iwatobi as Haruka and Makoto were walking to their first day of Middle School. Both of them, along with Nagisa said good-bye to Rin after they won the medley as he made his inevitable return to swim abroad in Australia.

However, the fact that they broke a curse, falling into relationships, and donned magic from their guardian angels still overwhelmed them this point in time. Despite their minds feeling like adults, all they ever wanted was to feel like actual kids with minds having potential to grow and evolve.

Haruka watched a bird flying away as one of the feathers shed off and gently drifted towards him. He caught it with curiosity and wonder.

"Haru…what do you think we should do?" Makoto asked.

"About what?" Haruka replied.

Makoto tapped on his chest where his Suiei Necklace was hidden inside, "Our powers…the Suiei Gods. If we join a swim club…"

"We won't," Haruka said flatly.

"Eh?" Makoto answered.

"We just can't…" Haruka repeated, "We do not tell anyone about this."

"I suppose you are right but…swimming though…" Makoto looked down at the ground sadly as they proceeded their journey to school, "Hopefully Rin is doing well in Australia…maybe with his memories back he can make impressive records."

Haruka said nothing in response. He couldn't bear to realize he did all those things with the others. No to mention, Rei was not yet found. Nagisa searched all over Iwatobi town for days but no sign of the megane. Was it their fate to be separated for the rest of their lives?

* * *

Despite being in different homeroom classes, Haruka sat by the window area before watching a teal-haired color boy approaching to his front row seat of the class. A loud thud struck in front of Haru as a salmon-colored hair boy was stunned to finally meet him.

"Y-You…are Haruka Nanase, right!?" Asahi asked.

"I…uh yes?" Haru replied.

"I saw your swim team earlier this year! Wow! You guys did great!" the other boy smiled, "Your reputation proceeds you. Do you plan to join our middle school team because I'll be…"

"No," Haruka turned his head to the side.

"Eh!? But so much word of you has been going on!" Asahi whined.

"If he says, no…why can't you just move on?" a cold voice replied.

The two turned to see the teal-haired boy staring at them.

"Now you…" Asahi approached to him.

"Heya guys!" Kisumi walked in with a bright smile on his face, "It's our first day here!"

"Who the heck are you?" Asahi asked.

_I am so glad Makoto isn't here for this_, Haruka thought.

* * *

Just outside the Iwatobi Middle school, a lone statue rested in the gardens, staring at the two homerooms where Makoto and Haruka sat for their lectures. If anyone took a closer look, its eyes blinked before it remained still again.

Makoto sat down in his homeroom as he felt somewhat lonely like this. However, a few other guys talked to him and expressed their admiration on his swimming. He smiled and thanked them.

_SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!_

All the students clasped their ears as this loud noise struck the school…followed by a period of inaudible. Makoto got up and ran to find Haruka as he and the others were also suffering the same effect. It took mere minutes but the hearing returned to normal.

"What on earth was that noise!?" some of the students panicked.

"Haru are you okay?" Makoto asked.

"I'm fine," he turned his head to the side but noticed that the statue wasn't there however…

A long trail of dirt led to his answer: the statue did move and rested in a different area of the flower bed. Some of the janitors saw this mess and tried to clean it up in time for lunch break and recess.

_Is it another one_, Haruka thought to himself, trying to deny it but his heart started to beat a bit fast.

* * *

When it was time for lunch, several students sat outside to enjoy the garden scenery despite the little mess that happened. Everyone gossiped about their summer, relationships, tournaments, and other dreams and prayers. The

It didn't take long before something happened.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" one of the girls screamed as the statue grabbed a hold of her legs, dragging her.

Everyone turned in horror to see what was happening as the statue readied its blade. One of the students threw a basketball to strike the statue on the head, releasing the girl as she cried in horror to safety.

"What in the name of…?" one of the other guys asked.

"It's a DEMON!" another one shouted.

**_"THE STATUE IS ALIVE!"_**

* * *

Makoto and Haruka saw this from the classroom as Ikuya, Asahi, and Kisumi were confused by the sudden noise.

"What is going on out there?!" Asahi walked to the window before almost fainting upon the moving statue.

Ikuya narrowed his eyes in curiosity before grunting to himself. Kisumi's expression even turned to worrisome which was normally not in his blood…

"We have to go," Makoto whispered as he could feel the shade taking over.

"In front of everyone?!" Haruka replied silently in a harsh-ish voice.

Seconds later, more students screamed as the statue flared to life and charged at the children. Haruka and Makoto got up and fled the classroom while Kisumi called them out.

"I don't like this…" Makoto whimpered as he and Haruka rushed down the stairs.

"Just how the hell do they even still exist?!" Haruka muttered, "These monsters only existed in the Time Loop!"

The announcement declared a lockdown emergency as the doors began to close. However, Haruka and Makoto managed to get outside before the teachers could stop them. Those who were already outside were redirected to exit.

They rushed past the fleeing students as the statue was already growing large in size by absorbing the dirt and rocks to its body.

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?" Makoto cried in terror before hiding behind Haruka.

Haruka closed his eyes as he could feel the warmth of his Suiei Necklace taking place.

"We have no choice…" Haruka muttered as his eye glowed blue. Makoto took a deep breath and his eyes glowed green in response. The area around them turned foggy in response.

The two held hands before running towards the slowly growing monster. At the right moment, they both jumped high. The monster tried to reach out its blades toward them, but it was past its limit.

Gaining in confidence, the gravity pulled them back down as their used their arms and legs to break the arms off the statue followed by an explosion of blood leaking from the elder bairn. The statue crumbled into dust in response.

Some of the blood splattered on their clothes and faces but the powers of their water washed it away. The fog cleared up the violent scene as if nothing ever occurred while the students remained confused at what happened and not recalling anything.

"Haruka…Makoto…you must remain wary about your powers," the dog watched from afar along with a kid hidden in the shadows.

"So…was this what you were telling me?" the kid asked, hiding in the shadows.

"Yes…they are the Suiei Gods," the dog replied, "But you must keep that knowledge to yourself. However, I will have a job for you when you finish middle school."

* * *

Ikuya sat in silence during dinner as he looked at the empty chair that belonged to his brother Natsuya. The older Kirishima brother suffered an accident the other day that resulted him a major loss of blood. Ikuya couldn't bear to lose his brother but at the same time, he was heartbroken by the fact that Natsuya told him to start opening to friends.

The mother wanted to ask him something but stopped as she saw the news relating to some supernatural yet mysterious incident that took place.

"Ikuya…did you see anything?" she asked.

"No…I don't remember anything…" Ikuya replied, not realizing that the magic of the fog wiped the memories away despite the videos showing what was happening. From what it looked, was school going to be closed for some time?

* * *

Asahi also watched this news on TV and for a split second thought he saw Makoto and Haruka were confronting the monster before everything turned to a blur. However, he didn't recall them going through this. Were they outside when it happened?

* * *

The news and the media about this incident alerted the Suiei Gods as the five sat somewhere at a nearby temple. It was already off with a horrible first day of the school. In agreement, they decided to use their powers and erase the memories of this incident except for Haruka and Makoto but unknowingly, one other person was able to hold it.

* * *

After a week of closure, the school resumed its calendar year, and everyone started back up their normal routines.

During lunch break, Asahi once more begged Haruka to join and the latter refused. However, a lavender-haired boy walked in and introduced himself.

"I see you are having some trouble there, Asahi," Nao smiled.

"Nao-senpai, I am so sorry! It's just that…" the first year began.

Haruka stared at the new comer as he continued, "Hello there, Haruka. My name is Nao Serizawa. I was previously the manager's assistant for the team but as of recent events, I am the team captain of our swim club."

"I don't like to be called as Haruka," the tsundere replied.

"I'm afraid that's what we go by in our team…first names only. We try to be more like a family," Nao smiled.

Makoto walked in and saw Haruka talking to Nao and Asahi. He saw Ikuya sulking to himself in his music device. Nao walked over and got Ikuya's attention too before he saw Makoto and smiled and beckoned him to join.

"Look…Nao, I cannot join the swim club…" Ikuya said.

"I know you've been through a lot but…if your brother was here…" he began.

Ikuya got up and walked away, not wanting to deal with this. The last thing he wanted to hear was about his brother. Asahi asked if there was something wrong, but Nao dismissed it for a moment but silently said, "His brother was going to be the team captain, but an emergency happened in the meantime."

"I'll join if Haru-chan joins," Makoto said, "I'm sure we can do something good for this team."

"I swim freestyle," Haruka reminded them.

"Well…I suppose you can swim free…but I will need to test you first. If you pass, I'll let you swim the way you want," Nao offered.

"And if he doesn't…?" Asahi asked.

"He will be put in a medley team," Nao answered.

* * *

Time passed as the new students joined the swim club. Nao managed to convince Ikuya upon reminding him in secret about what they were foretold. Haruka broke even on the time so he was granted both his freestyle and his assignment to the relay with Makoto, Ikuya and Asahi.

At break, Nao and Ikuya went to the side to discuss the events happening. Ikuya's true emotions were more of concern than just being the little prince that he acts like.

"I know…it's just I don't want to play this charade forever," he told Nao as they were in the locker room.

"Asahi hasn't remembered what happened yet," Nao replied, "But we'll sort this out. For now, just be yourself. When Asahi and Kisumi remember why he and the rest of us were born, we'll stage the next phase of our plan."

"But we are still missing one person…" Ikuya answered, "Kisumi is our fourth person but we don't have a fifth person that is the doppelganger of them."

"I'm sure we'll find out soon enough," Nao nodded as he could only speculate who it may be, "And I suspect he'll be at the tournament."

* * *

Sousuke sat down at his desk of his bedroom, looking at the two envelopes from Rin. He opened the one on the left and read it. His eye widened a little in shock followed by sadness as it told him about the dog going missing and the homestay parents are requesting a search party to find him. With a shrug, he opened the second letter and noticed it was much longer.

He scanned through it more carefully and noticed the erase marks that were sure enough talking about Haruka but was put a vague of "him".

"He never changes," Sousuke chuckled before looking at the calendar. The Iwatobi and Sano tournament was in three weeks. He could only pray that Haru and the others were getting ready. However, after a dream about his other self facing Haruka in that same race didn't go what he hoped it would be.

"I guess I should be a little soft on him…or not?" he talked to himself.

* * *

As the day of the tournament, the two fateful teams met and already Sousuke could see the broken bonds of the Iwatobi team. He was not ready to confront them but it was a job he had to do both for himself and for the future…

"My name is Sousuke Yamazaki, classmate of Rin Matsuoka from Sano elementary school. Now I am a current first year student of Sano Middle School," he introduced himself to Makoto and Haruka.

_Why do I get the feeling he knows something,_ Makoto thought.

Haruka kept silent as Sousuke looked at his blue eyes, "I shall swim freestyle with you. Be ready and be sharp."

* * *

Rin woke up in despair as he felt something painful in his heart. Rushing waters in a pool, dissolving bond with teammates. The dream that he just witnessed…could it be?

"What's happening to everyone back home?" he muttered as he realized he slept on the couch.

He got up on his feet and walked up to the window, praying that the others are doing well. He wrote the letter to Sousuke not too long ago and could only wait to see what would happen with everyone back in Iwatobi.

* * *

As the race ended, Sousuke was about to grab Haruka to chastise his demotivation of swimming but one of the other swimmers pulled him back. However, it was enough moments for him to noticed something off in Haruka's eyes…

_T-the hell_, he thought while gritting his teeth, _is he really Haruka?_

In the aftermath, as the two teams were dismissed for the day, Sousuke arrived at the four swimmers with disdain but keeping calm in his voice, "Nanase…tell me why you did this to me?"

"It has nothing to do with you," Haruka answered.

"Like hell it doesn't! Rin has told me so much about you…bragged about your talent and raw skill! It's clear that you were not yourself today!" Sousuke replied.

"S-Souske, please get a grip! Our team…hasn't been quite…" Makoto began but stopped.

"Yeah, don't harass Haruka like that!" Asahi added.

Haruka turned to them, "I will handle this."

_This Sousuke_, Ikuya thought, _I sense his aura…could he be…?_

"What I meant to say is that, Rin has been struggling a lot in Australia and he needs you to not give up. If you keep falling apart like this…so will he! Look for that swimmer in you, Nanase….and when you find him, you know where to find me," Sousuke said, gently shoving the letter at Haruka's chest before walking away.

Ikuya stared at this Sousuke, wondering something about his aura coming out. Nao noticed this from afar and lowered his head.

"Haru…that letter?" Makoto asked.

With a sigh, Haruka opened it and read it through. A part of him wanted to shove it in the bag but because of their memories and their bonds, it was clear that something was going wrong with Rin in Australia.

_Not to mention this Sousuke…why did he reminded him of Rin?_

"Who is this…Rin?" Asahi questioned.

"Someone…who swam with us back in elementary school…" Makoto lowered his head, "But that story…will be discussed some other time. Let's go home."

* * *

**Hours Later:**

Makoto snuck from the house, heading down towards the port where he saw Sousuke sitting against the wall with his first in the air.

"You're a lot closer than I thought," Makoto said.

Sousuke turned, "You're not Nanase."

"I know," Makoto replied, sitting down, "I didn't even tell him I left the house."

"Huh?" the other boy looked confused, "Then why are you here?"

Makoto smiled, "If you were close friends with Rin…in this world…how come we never seen you before?"

Sousuke's eyes widened as he realized that the other boy slipped, "So…you are awake?"

"Awake?" Makoto's face looked confused.

"You can't hide from me…I know both of you have magic," Sousuke said, returning the smile, "Actually, I am glad you are here. As for who I am, I am just me."

"Just you?" Makoto tilted his head.

"Well my father and my cousin I live with them. My mother died after I was born," he continued, "I started swimming because I wanted to share my dream with Rin likewise…I too was admired by his swimming. Just like how he was with Nanase."

"If you and Haru are…" Makoto began.

"We are not alike!" Sousuke blushed madly, "However…why did you guys struggled today? I watched you all and I wasn't pleased."

"…we haven't been getting along to well lately," the other boy answered, "Even I feel something different about myself. Our magic is disabled for the time being but the other day…"

"The elder bairn appeared, didn't it?" Sousuke finished.

"E-EHHH!? You knew about that?!" Makoto gasped.

"…I saw you and Haru fighting it down. It's that very same motivation that you need to continue swimming. I don't want to see either of you fall apart…not for when the future holds something…special," he added.

"You…know what will happen to us?" Makoto asked.

"I do know for sure that your butterfly friend will return to Iwatobi," Sousuke winked.

Makoto stared at him with almost disbelief, but he smiled to know that Rei will soon be back in a few years.

"To be honest Makoto I know what's going to happen to all of you…but I am forced to not speak anymore about it because I could disrupt or change history completely. That's why…I will soon leave for America after the next tournament," Sousuke explained, "Until you guys build that future. I cannot be around to help you…that is my price I gave to him."

"Witch boy…" Makoto nodded.

"Your team is going to be fine…alright?" Sousuke smiled, "And I will one day return to you guys when the future is made. For now, **_go to Haru and swim with him…tell him the truth about yourself."_**

It was that moment when Makoto realized the answer to the questions, he asked of himself when Nao wanted to know about his motives for swimming. Makoto got up and waved a farewell before going back towards Haru's house.

Sousuke was about to get up and head home when he saw Ikuya and Nao on the scene.

"And who are you?" Sousuke asked.

"I wanted to ask you the same earlier…" Ikuya replied, "You spoke about the Elder Bairns. You must be one of us."

"We ask you to join us," Nao said, "Because of their futures…"

Sousuke sighed and got up, "I still find it hurtful that we are nothing more than just a distortion of this world…yet our other selves are…"

"We must not interfere with their stories," Nao said as he revealed the book of the past, "All what we need to know about them lies in this book."

Ikuya remained silent as Sousuke took the book and looked at the pages of the Ancient Greeks and the betrayal of the humans to the Suiei Gods. Further pages showed the team rescuing Haruka from a bizarre madman as well as confronting an entity bound to keep the curse from breaking.

"So, the curse was broken and thus we were born from them?" Sousuke asked.

"We are more like…emergency reserves," Nao said, "Should they face a time of crisis…we must unite our hearts to theirs."

Sousuke closed the book, "Where are the other two?"

"We got their attention and brought them with us…awake as well thanks to some potion from witch boy," Ikuya answered, "For now, we should make sure that Makoto save Haruka…"

* * *

Makoto rushed up the lofty steps and made it to Haruka's house. He pushed on the doorbell, but it was all silent. He turned to see the young boy with a bag containing mackerel cans. Without hesitation, Makoto grabbed his hands, "Let's go!"

"W-whaaat?!" Haruka cried out as he urged him to follow through town, heading towards the Iwatobi SC.

After break into the pool, they jumped in and followed each other around as Makoto was finally happy to be with Haruka in peace as well as just being in the water to clear his murky thoughts. Sousuke was indeed right….this was the starting point to build that future...even if it meant working with other people along away…

_Because one day…._

_They will reunite…_

The two rested on the lane markers as they stared at the glass ceiling and the stars beyond. Makoto smiled and this time added the magic words that he failed to say during the time loop, "I love swimming and Haruka…so please let's remain to swim together for our future! And even if we must fight more monsters…we will have everyone with us! I know we'll reunite!"

Haruka's eyes widened as he could see his future self dressed in clothes of blue and white with gold and a sword in hand. The background in front of them was filled with endless sand. The Future STYLE FIVE stared at the younger Makoto and Haruka with smiles on their face as a silhouette of a sixth member appeared in the shadows but they all looked happy.

_"I swim"_

_"Free"_

_"For the team"_

_"With my precious bonds"_

_"Together with beauty…"_

_"Because it's our…"_

The vision stopped as they were back in the pool water, wondering what the last phrase was all about. However, they both got out of the pool as they knew it was late.

* * *

Sousuke watched this scene from the outside window along with Asahi, Nao, Ikuya and Kisumi. Asahi and Kisumi were struck with warmth radiating from the two inside.

"So this is…" Kisumi began, shaking the truth.

"This is who we are," Sousuke answered, "We are them…and they are us. That was what we were cursed to be. But they will one day…save all of us. Until then, we must do our best to let their story…their destiny to run its course."

"So it's true then…you're leaving too, Sousuke?" Kisumi asked, feeling saddened.

"I have to," Sousuke replied before turning to Asahi, "I am sorry about earlier…but now that you are awake too, you and Ikuya must ensure that they reach to the future…even if it means you have to distance yourselves from them."

"But I want to see them be happy!" Asahi pouted while crossing his arms, "Not to mention we still have a race to win!"

"We will be sure to win the relay…after that…I'm not looking forward to what will happen with Haru," Ikuya lowered his eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Asahi asked, looking concerned, "What's gonna happen to him?"

"We will one day reunite, that is what we were promised," Nao said, "For now. Let us leave them for the night…and remember to continue the charade…"

* * *

**Next Day**

The five of them, while keeping up with the charade, the truth did burden them as they could hear the evil voice of Pandora, shaming their existence and the distortion of space-time. However, none of them were going to give into that as they knew that one day…the future will come.

Ikuya ran through the streets, heading to his old elementary swim club from the bridge as Asahi tackled him down and called him out about quitting the swim club. Makoto and Haruka arrived shortly after.

"WHY ARE YOU BEING SO RECKLESS!?" Asahi shouted.

"YOU ARE JUST…" Ikuya began but stopped to see the other two, "W-why is everyone here…?"

"Ikuya, something is bothering you. Can't you tell us what's wrong?" Makoto asked.

The teal-haired boy looked down as he tried to not show his tears but with a heavy sigh, he began to share his tale…

"That swim club there…was where my brother Natsuya and I used to go to. Natsuya is my older brother…he coached me a lot and gave me support for swimming. We were like best friends but then one day…he told me to start exploring the outside world more and meet new people. He also said that whatever you start something, you should see it through to the end. I didn't want to admit this but…in a way, I kinda understand why now…but that's not the point…

"Days before the first day of school, he was hit by a car and lost so much blood. He hasn't been able to come home yet and…I…"

Ikuya's face teared up, **_"I don't know if he is even alive…I don't think I can go on like this without him…"_**

The three other teammates hugged him as a group while he cried in their arms. While it was true that he indeed cared for his brother, he couldn't bear to reveal his otherworldly knowledge and his admiration of them for defeating the elder bairn earlier.

"How are you guys so strong?" he asked.

"Ugh I wish I had a tissue," Asahi muttered.

"Your brother…shares the same philosophy as us," Makoto replied, **_"Whatever we do…we see it through…come hell or high water. No matter what, we don't give ourselves much of a choice."_**

"Here, use my shirt Ikuya," Asahi added.

"Ugh…why would I use that?" Ikuya shrugged.

"OH COME ON THIS GETS CLEANED EVERY NIGHT!" Asahi cried out loud in annoyance.

Ikuya laughed a little at this comedic moment as Makoto's smile and Haruka's approval of hope encouraged him to keep on going. It was from here on out that their bonds will bring them closer to victory…that they did.

"Look, I have faith your brother will be alright," Makoto said, "I hope he does come home."

"…me too," Ikuya nodded, "Hopefully we'll get a blood donor that matches his."

* * *

Just days after they won the tournament in relay, Natsuya passed away but Ikuya and the mother were there for his last moments. The following day, Nao, Haruka, Asahi and Makoto attended the funeral to support him. After Natsuya was buried (which was rather unusual), Nao secretly returned to the site to remove a talisman that witch boy gave to Natsuya while the latter was admitted in the hospital. It was designed to preserve his soul and Nao was able to retrieve it and give it to witch boy for safe keeping.

Even still…as Ikuya knew what was coming about their team. Haruka did withdraw from swimming after what happened with Rin. As much as it hurt him, he knows that his story cannot intervene with his. It was all in a matter of time and space that the team will soon be assembled…

With this, both the Shiina and Kirishima families gained opportunities in Tokyo, sending the team apart for what would be permanent until that final battle against the Dark One occurred and saving their futures once more…

Kisumi's family also moved out but they ended up somewhere in Europe. One day, he too would be summoned to join the quests of the Magic Six and Anastasia as well as the final battle.

As for Sousuke, he departed to America and joined the Terran Nost, taking on hunting-based skills and defeating anyone who would dare to take advantage of the heroes and their magic as well as keeping the rumors down. He would one day meet up with the heroes at that awkward picnic, but they would bond well up to the very end…

**~To be continued in Segment 2: The Future!~**


	8. Story 3: High Speed! Stage 2 Part II

**~Segment 2: The Future~**

(The afterlife takes place during Book 0.5: Earthly Tales of the Past, OVA #4 which that book will be posted on a later date  
The Planet Duniya scenes take place concurrent to Short Story #2: Ignition Restart!)

* * *

**Ikuya's POV: Swampy Sparkling Tide**

_My name is Ikuya Kirishima, the younger brother of Natsuya. Living here in this paradise may be filled with promises but to me, it's just being stagnant of not being "obliterated" despite being "deceased". Not that I have nothing against anyone or this realm…it just feels weird. _

_Asahi and I partake on a serious quest to help the Gen 2.0 fulfill their destiny. With it being achieved, there was nothing much else required on our end. I do admit that it was nice…being able to fight for those who we love. _

_I went to the temple to reflect my life back in Gen 1.0. A lot did happen as both Asahi and I were separated from the middle school team. We ended up in Tokyo with some decent lifestyle but then we ended up in the streets of hell while doing strange jobs from witch boy._

_My older brother Natsuya…passed away when he was in his third year of middle school. Nao took over the swim team as captain in his place. Even though we were successful in our medley team, Haruka still quit after…but it was…_

"Ikuya…what are you doing?" I could hear Asahi's voice.

"Nothing," I muttered.

But Asahi already grabbed the book and saw what I was reading.

"Ikuyaaaa…you know that was all in the past," he said.

"I'm still upset for what has happened to us. We were a team but none of us had magic…until we fought against the Dark One," I replied, "I felt like we were just 'used' and not living a happy life!"

"But…we did…Aqua Duniya…?" Asahi asked.

"Bakasahi…it's the same treatment we had," I answered, "We had to wait till the final battle! I felt useless both times when I really wanted to be on their sides throughout their entire journey!"

"I suppose you do have a point. We couldn't have fun or laugh with anyone…like in middle school," Asahi concurred.

"That might be so…" a voice was heard.

I turned to see Hiyori arriving at the scene. He was carrying a basket of mixed fish and bread from the market.

"But I'm afraid Ikuya is still upset with how things happened," Hiyori finished.

"You weren't even there!" Asahi shouted, "I DID NOT SEE YOU FIGHT ANY BATTLES! AND JUST WHERE WAS YOUR STORY!? WHERE IS YOUR PAGE OF THE BOOK!?"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" I shouted, "The real reason why I was looking at the book is because I wanted to apply what we learned from the past generations."

"Eh?" they both replied, confused.

I sighed before answering, "Do you remember those crystals a while back? Pandora thinks it was a message from the Magic Six…of another land. She also thinks that we might be the ones to teach them how to fight."

"And this Magic Six team…of that other land…what happened to them?" Hiyori asked.

I replied with an answer as they both looked a bit shocked and confused.

"So, what does that have to do with us?" Asahi asked.

"That team…may be under our wing…if their resurrection is successful," I got up before heading back outside. They followed me out as we all looked at the golden skies, time was indeed ticking closer despite living in this afterlife.

I finally saw Natsuya walking with Nao as they were both very happy to be together again as well. I smiled and joined up with them, knowing that at least there is some place for us. After the Magic Six and our group joined them to this paradise, Natsuya and a few others waited for this reunion. Thus, it was a day I could never forget. Back when I lived on Earth, I would do yearly memorials for my brother, wishing him to stay safe. Nao told me that he had preserved his soul but it wasn't guaranteed how long he could survive but thanks to the Magic Six and Pandora...that wish was possible.

Deep down, I was a bit hurt from Haru's decision but I knew it was also hitsuzen. In the end, we have joined forces for the better and next thing we knew, we celebrated a special wedding. But now that's behind us...

"You ready to go back to the house?" Natsuya asked me.

"Yes," I replied.

* * *

Eventually Natsuya and I returned to our family home, but we saw a strange hooded figure. We readied our weapons at the stranger, worried that this was a threat.

_"Heh, so neither of you could recognize me?"_ the voice echoed in our minds.

"We never met," I answered, "Who are you!?"

The hooded figure took off his head as we both gasped at the person before us. However, was this person…

"Y-you can't be!" I gasped.

"I don't think it's him," Natsuya answered, "There's no way he could've…"

_"Oh, I lived a perfect life,"_ Kaede's voice echoed in our minds, _"I grew up without my parents. Now they're trying to find me, thinking that a lost love will override my ambitions."_

"What the hell do you intend to do?" Natsuya asked.

"It's only one of you!" I replied.

**_"Who said I was alone,"_** Kaede's voice echoed again as a small coven of cloaked figures surrounded the two brothers.

"Crap! Who the hell are these bitches!?" Natsuya growled.

**_"This is my family,"_**Kaede replied in our minds as he twirled around his sinister outfit. His golden-spiked hair and flashy electric-neon yellow eyes. It was clear that he was up to something…

"How the hell did you get to the heavens!?" I demanded.

"The magic here blocks by those of darkness!" Natsuya added.

**_"Alone yes…but this family together can do anything,"_** Kaede replied mentally,**_ "However it is not enough for me to stay here as long as I would wish but…"_**

"Either way, the Magic Six and the others will be here to exterminate you!" I replied.

Hiyori arrived on scene with Nao and Sousuke as they realized the danger that was happening.

_**"You guys may be dead, but your souls still exist…in due time, that won't be the case,"**_Kaede continued.

"He can't do anything!" Nao said.

"He's bluffing," Hiyori agreed.

_**"Am I? Then tell me…what would you do if those children of the Mahotsukai get separated and twisted to become…just like us?"**_ Kaede answered.

"YOU LEAVE THEM ALONE!" Natsuya shouted as he readied his Tiger Shark Barbed Sword.

A rumble of thunder was heard followed by an alarm that struck the city. The group vanished but it didn't take long to see Pandora in great distress. Everyone gathered at the Stonehenge as the daughter of Chaos was in great tears with her husband.

"Why can't we just rest in peace the way we are supposed to be!?" Pandora cried.

"Honey, I'll go back and find them…your story is over…but my story has only begun," Dodecadron replied.

"Hold up," I said, "What the hell happened here?"

* * *

**Asahi's POV: Sunrise Spiraling Breeze**

I quickly rushed at Stonehenge to hear the last bits of the incident. Ikuya informed me of the rest of the story.

"Well, that's definitely one hell of a big mess waiting to happen," I said.

_My name is Asahi Shiina, a newly trained senshi that fought with the Gen 2.0 team on Olympia. Together, we brought Olympia Magna to restoration as well as the return of Atlantis. Since then, myself and Ikuya returned to the afterlife realm to wait upon the next phase of our training._

From the looks of Pandora and Dodecadron, it appears that we may resume our mission soon enough. The mother sat there in disbelief, anger, and sadness.

"Wait a sec, those cloaked figures, did they have a symbol on them, and they screeched like hyenas?" I asked.

"Y-you know them?" Ikuya looked at me hard.

"Not exactly but I remember reading something about them…" I shrugged.

"They're not creatures…they're witches," Pandora answered, "I knew of their existence as the Dark One but I never replied to their invitations…being inferior that they were of course."

"What are these witches and why were they after your family?" I asked.

"…they are seekers and they perform the vilest rituals that one can imagine…whatever they are doing to them…" she began.

"Honey please, let me go rescue our family before they try to do something," Dodecadron begged.

Pandora turned to him and replied, handing him something of value, "Then…wear my necklace…to remember me and the heroes who have saved you."

I looked at Ikuya as he shrugged. We both knew deep down that this couple needed our help once again and it was going to be a new mission to start soon. Rasputin and Alex also arrived to hear the news as they too faced problems with the same cloaked figures spreading some damage around the cities.

"The others and I will stand guard at the Suiei Temple. Hopefully there was no damage there," Alex said.

"Go spend some time with your sister and nephew," Ikuya told me, "You might not get to see them for a while."

"Don't tell me what to do," I jokingly answered before heading back to my sister's residency. Her husband Kon and their child Tsukushi were also in peace with their family garden. My sister called me over to the garden and presented me with a strange looking key.

"What is this?" I asked.

"It's a key," she smiled.

"I can see that," was my response.

"Asahi, I know your feelings are hidden from me and our family but...you really set the bar high on your last mission. This key is designed to help you find your way back when all hope is lost. It will open any door as long as your heart wishes for it," Akane explained.

"I…uh…thank you," I replied.

"So then, when do you go back?" Akane asked.

"Depending how bad the mission must be fulfilled," I answered.

Tsukushi cooed softly followed by a soft giggle. I came to realize that this is the afterlife realm and that this baby never had a chance to live a life. It pains me to see this in that sense but yet Akane and Kon are just happy to finally be in a safer realm away from the horrors of mortality.

"You'll grow up into a wonderful man Tsuki," I smiled before hugging my sister.

"Do visit your father before you go, alright? He's got something for you too," Akane replied.

* * *

After visiting my father, I walk outside to see Kisumi hanging out with Hiyori and Ikuya, discussing the incident of the Le Fay family. Ikuya informed me that Dodecadron was already starting to pack up and preparing to discuss with witch boy on how he will use his new life.

"So…is he gonna be joining us too?" I asked about Hiyori.

"He's got the approval…and besides, his spirit animal has awakened," Ikuya told me.

"Oh really now? What did ya get?" I look at Hiyori.

"A Polar Bear," Hiyori crossed his arms with a little smirk.

"Judging by your size, you must be," I teasingly said.

"You do realize that Polar Bears and Seals aren't always on terms," Hiyori answered.

"Are you trying to flirt me?" I responded.

"Okay guys, we need to figure out what the hell is going on with our new enemies," Ikuya sighed, "We may have a new war upon us and if these enemies gain the upper hand…"

"Well we just can't let them have the knife first to whoever is the little mermaid," Hiyori answered.

"Where did Natsuya go? I asked.

"He and Nao are checking in with the new arrivals," Ikuya said.

"How many more people showed up?" I muttered.

"Enough to keep the book growing," Ikuya shrugged, "Now we better prepare ourselves…our next destination may be something unpleasant."

With that we gathered ourselves at the Suiei Temple as a portal was presented with the help of witch boy. Dodecadron arrived with a backpack and was looking rather…well…a different style I gotta say. He kissed his wife and hugged Alex and Rasputin before walking through.

"There's one thing I need to tell you gentlemen," Pandora said, "If the portal takes you to the right realm…you might end up being cursed with another persona."

"Oh dear…" I muttered, "Does this mean we'll forget stuff?"

"I have no clue on what the curse will do but it is likely you will be facing new villains too where ever you end up," she answered, "Hopefully your senshi wands will protect you through."

"Good luck. We'll join you soon," Natsuya wished us all.

"We will be sure to have the new teams ready as soon as possible," Nao added.

Knowing this, it was our turn. We turned to say goodbye to the Magic Six and their allies as they wished us all the best of luck. I followed Ikuya and we fell into the unknown…the world spun around our heads..,

* * *

**Narrator POV:**  
~Planet Duniya, During the Curse…years before Book 1 Present Day~  
(Some scenes tie over to Short Story #2: Ignition Restart)

Ikuya opened his eyes and found himself sitting on a bench in some sort of a busy street. He felt his hair was slightly longer than usual and his mind in a state of mild confusion. Asahi gasped loudly to see himself through a glass window that he was back to his younger self.

"MY HAIR! IT'S SYMMETRICAL AGAIN!" he cried out.

"You're so loud as usual," Ikuya sighed.

"Your hair is also longer in the front bangs…why did we revert ourselves to this state?!" Asahi answered.

"It's probably the price to this trip…we must be at a time where the star of our team is still young," Ikuya speculated.

"Eh? You're not making sense?" Asahi asked.

"Haven't you paid attention to what Pandora told us?" Ikuya replied, "She told us that a new curse struck from a different planet that brought the inhabitants to this new land…well…kinda. Haruka and the others have been here before, but this is after that final battle."

"Since when did she tell us that part?! I don't care about the timelines," Asahi sighed, "I had to work extra hard on swimming and working out to become a full-fledged senshi and Water Knight and now we're kids again!"

"Well perhaps a simple transformation with your pen can suffice an illusion," Ikuya muttered as he looked for his Shionezaki Crystal Wand. He gasped when he couldn't find it.

"Eh?" Asahi muttered before he too dug through his clothes but also didn't find the wand.

"We had our wands as we exited the portal…what the hell…" Ikuya said, "Did we lose them!?"

"Maybe the others have theirs?" Asahi shrugged, "And where are we to be exact?"

Ikuya looked up and saw a map detailing "Aeuropa City" and its metro and suburbs. After a minute, he found the "you are here" sticker labeling on a borderline of Hollywood Heights, Rocker's Square, and Avestown.

"Sooooo…where are we gonna stay?" Asahi asked.

"IKUYA! ASAHI!" a voice shouted.

The two turned to see an adult woman who was nearly out of breath. From the looks of her clothes, it appeared that she worked in a serious job.

"Why did you both run out like that?!" she scolded, "You know better than to take out on the streets!"

"Oh uhhhhhh, we were looking for a gift," Ikuya tried to improvise, "Apparently we were misled on directions…"

"Come, let us bring you two back to the center," the woman sighed while developing a plan to separate them to different rooms.

"What center is she talking about?" Asahi whispered.

"No idea…?" Ikuya was confused.

* * *

**Carter's Foster Home**

"Let me go!" Asahi shouted angrily as he was pushed into the bedroom. He tried to bang on the door but realized there were other people sleeping except for one.

"D-Did I wake you?" he asked.

"No," the other boy replied, "How come I've never seen you before? Are you new?"

"Uhhhh kinda a long story," Asahi replied with a nervous sweat-drop, "We just got here yet the adults think we've been here."

"Sounds a bit mad but then again, what is reality," he shrugged, "I've been here for as long as I can remember."

"What is your name?" Asahi asked.

"I'm Romio…Romio Hayahune," the other boy answered.

Asahi noticed the streamline looks on him before prompting, "Are you by chance a swimmer?"

"Y-Yes…well kinda," Romio shrugged, "I'm currently on a team at the school."

"That's amazing!" Asahi said, "But listen, I cannot stay here in this place…"

"Good luck trying to escape," the other boy sighed, "No matter how far you can go, the technology here tightens the security."

* * *

Time passed for Ikuya and Asahi as waited for an opportunity to escape this "confinement" in the center. Ikuya would sneak in some maps and timetables to plot out the perfect escape route. However, he grew more suspicious into how much time Asahi was talking with Romio.

Finally, Ikuya had the moment to bring the young boy aside for some small interrogation.

"How much time have you talked to Asahi?" he asked.

"I uhhhh, we're roommates…why are you so concerned of him?" Romio replied.

"He's all I got left for a family," Ikuya improvised, "He's a cousin and I'm concerned he's gonna just make a fatal error in separating us further."

"Asahi is a nice guy, I enjoy his company. Besides, no one has ever tolerated me here in this room nor this orphanage," Romio said, "I have two friends at the school, but I barely see them except during our swim club."

Asahi heard the conversation in the hallway, so he walked over to the other room where they were talking.

"Oi Ikuya, why are you talking to Romio?" Asahi asked.

"Hm, how much did you share is what I'm interested in," Ikuya answered.

"Share what?" he replied.

"The fact that we are awake Bakasahi!" Ikuya shouted.

"N-Now now you guys," Romio sweat drop a bit of nervousness.

"I'm going back to my room before you either pull another stunt that could get us all killed…or worse…out in the streets," Ikuya said.

* * *

As another week or two passed by, the trio started to bond a bit as well as meeting Shizuru and Ayumu at a nearby park during a group field trip, but they were constantly watched by the chaperons. Asahi was also fascinated by the fact that they were also part of the swim team too, yet they never met them on Earth or any other realms.

_Are they purely native here_, thought Asahi.

By sundown, the two managed to climb down from the building and entering to an alley. However, it was not going to be easy in finding a place to hide. However, most of the lighting was coming from Hollywood Heights so they took it to the streets to get there.

"Wow…such a nice city!" Asahi smiled.

"Don't fall for its gentrification, I can smell the curse being the strongest here," Ikuya said.

"So…the curse created this town?" the pink-salmon haired asked.

"Most likely, but we have no idea who casted it and why," Ikuya answered, "Yet I feel one of our wands is here in this town."

The two continued down the street when they could hear some of the police heading towards them.

"Great…it must be the curfew!" Asahi gasped, "We have to hide!"

"This way!" Ikuya said as he dragged Asahi down another alley. The two could hear the policemen running after them.

"Over here!" the dark-green haired found a large bush to hide in. They blended in with the darkness as the police turned on their flashlights. Ikuya closed his eyes and tried to link to the power of his pen and sure enough it granted him some magic…

"No one is here, they must have gone that way," one of the cops said.

"Let's check on the other side," the other policeman suggested.

As soon as they left, the two sighed in relief.

"That was close," Asahi breathed.

"We're sleeping on the rooftop," Ikuya answered.

"Ugh…I knew you'd say that," Asahi replied.

* * *

The two woke up on the rooftop the next morning as a few birds were soaring around in curiosity. Asahi wanted to shoo them away but Ikuya recognized a specific bird back when they lived on Aqua Duniya.

"A pied-crow?" he muttered.

Another one showed up and made a soft cawing sound.

"I have a feeling we gotta move," Asahi said, "We could get caught any moment."

"Wait…I think this bird is trying to tell me something," Ikuya replied as the pied crow screeched before beckoning them to follow.

* * *

The duo arrived at a shopping plaza as the pied crows flew low (but not too low to scare the crowds of people) and gasped at the sight on one of the windows.

"My transformation pen!" Ikuya said.

"Awwwww," Asahi chuckled sadly, "I wish I was first."

"Oi, it's only a start," the other kid sighed, "But why would my pen be in a shop and OMG…HOW MUCH ARE THEY CHARGING FOR THAT?!"

Asahi looked at the price tag that said, "50,000"

"Those greedy bastards…" Ikuya growled, making a fist, "That pen is worth more than green paper bills…"

He closed his eyes and concentrated on the pen, hoping that some sort of magic would bring it to him. At first it seemed to work but the pen fell from its resting place and the alarms went off.

"Are they serious?!" Asahi cried out.

"Oh fuck this. I'm sick and tired of being the good-guy…for once these bastards are gonna have to face my wrath," Ikuya sighed as he picked up a brick and threw it at the window. He rushed to grab the pen just as one of the cashiers arrived and gasped before crying out to the police.

"Let's go!" Ikuya said.

"Can't you transform!?" Asahi shouted.

"Like we have time for that!?" Ikuya answered back.

The pied crows screeched for them to follow. Ikuya and Asahi ran as fast as they could while more cops chased them and some even shot bullets. Ikuya's pen glowed, creating a force field. The birds flew a couple of blocks before arriving at some sort of a tunnel that led to the sewer system.

"Your pen better clean us later," Asahi said and they both jumped in, sliding through a tunnel before landing into the mucky water.

The police tried to get to the vent but the pied crows attacked in large numbers at the crowd. Ikuya's pen glowed and created a pathway of light to get through the tunnels before reaching the edge of the city that led to the ocean.

Asahi was scared to jump but Ikuya was wasting no time and he jumped down. The other boy followed suit as they swam their respective styles of breaststroke and butterfly. After a 2-mile swim to the south they arrived at some abandoned beach area before resting on the sands. To their surprised, they weren't as tired as expected.

"I-Ikuyaa…" Asahi breathed, "I didn't know you could be reckless too."

"Just don't piss me off," Ikuya answered with a wink, "Why did you only swim butterfly?"

"And you changed your stroke to freestyle," he said, "You sure are like Haruka."

"Whatever…" Ikuya replied, "He might be fast but his story along with the others are done…now it's our turn."

"Of course," Asahi smiled cheekily.

* * *

**Smith's Development & Community Design: V's Tower HQ**

"The pen…IT WAS STOLEN!?" Veronica shouted.

"Words from the police that two young boys broke the storefront and have taken it right off the window," one of the reports told her.

"What do they look like?" the CEO asked.

Veronica reviewed the photos and the video clip as a part of her mind twitched at them…she could feel something resurfacing her memory as she squinted.

"Do you know them?" the reporter question.

"No," Veronica said, "Now get out. I have business to attend to."

* * *

As soon as they were gone, Veronica made her way to the secret room as her prisoner. The witch looked up to see her.

"Do you know who broke into that shop to steal my pen?" Veronica asked.

"I'm afraid not," Verrado replied.

"Then tell me…how was it possible that those brats are even here?!" she shouted, "Those young boys…I know they too have magic if they managed to get it!"

"Ah…so you are finally remembering?" the witch chuckled.

"SHUT UP! If those brats are here, it's a matter of time before more heroes arrive," Veronica snarled.

"You don't even remember how the curse was cast," the witch answered.

"I casted the curse so I can keep what is precious to me!" she replied, "After all of what I've done…for my family…I lose that, and it'll be war with those heroes!"

"As much as I admit you are feisty for your revenge, today is not your day…yet" Verrado replied as she waved her had again to put her to sleep.

Kei walked out from the shadows, "You are lucky I am here…that stupid wrist thing she gave to you…"

"I know, but for now…put it back on for me until we are sure that what she saw were the heroes. Did you grab the photos?" she asked.

"I did," Kei said, as he handed them over.

_How much longer will it be_, the witch thought, _I can't keep putting you asleep…once you do remember the betrayal and your deeds…will you keep your family still? Or will you sacrifice their happiness for yours?_

After a brief analysis, "Well, well…so Abigail is right about one thing…they are starting to appear at last."

"I cannot let them break the curse," Kei replied, "Not until my revenge is complete…"

"How much longer are you willing to wait?" Verrado asked.

"As long as it takes for me to get what I want," Kei said before staring at the empty space of the chamber, "…Akiteru."

"If you do intend to destroy his belief, you have to cut what is at the root of the source," Verrado explained.

"I know…and that alone won't frightened me," Kei said.

"And are you sure you are ready for what comes next?" Verrado questioned.

Kei turned with a dark emotion on his face, "I will do what I must to bring father back."

"Of course…then we will…" Verrado began when she smelled something off.

"What is it?" Kei asked.

Verrado's face growled, "Someone…is here…I sense magic!"

"W-where?! What source is it from?!" the boy asked.

* * *

Ben Yago saw the incident of the pen theft but he recognized the boys all too well as a smile warmed up his face. He knew that it was a matter of time before help will soon be on the way. However…

He took out the pen that belonged to Asahi Shiina and said, "Return to your master…he waits for you."

It disappeared from his hand, heading back to him. His time here hiding with the company has allowed him to get around town and work with the civilians under Veronica's watch. He came to this town after discovering the curse was cast but he managed to blend himself right in…after all…he too was on the verge of revenge…

* * *

**Away from Aeuropa City…**

Ikuya and Asahi made a new settlement for themselves to live in (mostly done by Ikuya's wand) but after a couple of days, Asahi's pen appeared in his hands and he chanted it to create a nice cabin for himself. The other boy facepalmed but was relieved that now they got their magic back.

Their settlement would be their new home as they were on their own. The challenges that they will face next will include a return visit to the city to locate the lost child as well as relocating the rest of their teammates.

One day, Asahi walked into Ikuya's cabin where he had a pic of his brother, Nao, and Hiyori. He chuckled upon seeing it. Another photo rested next to it, showing every one of the Iwasame Senshi team along with Pandora and Dodecadron on their wedding day. Ikuya brought back a bucket of some wood and was about to scold him but didn't.

"Have you talked to your sister yet?" Ikuya asked.

"…last night," he said, "The paradise is still running normally. I assume you talked to your bro."

"Hm," Ikuya nodded, "He and Nao are helping some new arrivals there with the Magic Six."

"I see…so many people are immigrating there…I wonder how many more will come," Asahi muttered.

"In due time, when our story does come to an end, I am sure we'll finally have our world united at last," Ikuya said.

"But in the mean time we'll return to Aeuropa City…and find our new leader…our new prince to protect," Asahi answered.

"Do you think we'll find the others?" Ikuya asked.

"Of course we will! If Haurka and the others found each other…it should be no different to us!" the other kid said cheerfully.

"I know that we have to…but if we are doing this, the only way we guaranteed our success…" Ikuya began as his face turned grim.

**_"…break the curse,"_** Asahi finished as he recalled the warnings, "But we were warned by Pandora that breaking this new curse will have dire consequences to bystanders…are we that willing to sacrifice them just for our cause?"

"I have a feeling this curse is probably the worst we've ever seen…Pandora told me something else about the witches and if what she says about them is true…if the curse remains intact, hell will soon be unleashed," Ikuya said.

"Then we must go back and see what we can do to prevent a hell from emerging to this land," Asahi replied.

"You're impossible," Ikuya sighed but knew that he was right, "Let's make a different disguise until we find him…"

"Alright," Asahi agreed.

From there, Asahi and Ikuya used the transformation pens to create an original disguise dubbed Super Shion and Super Kaza. Since they cannot unlock their true powers as a Suiei Senshi yet, the pens were designed to create a secondary disguise for them. Upon returning to the city, they began a series of battling evil of all sorts.

It wasn't easy as the residents of Hollywood Heights initially wanted to know about the expensive pen theft but a sprinkle of magic from someone erased that day from the minds of people. They would become an urban legend and kept their true identities well hidden.

The wheel of fate has begun a new turn…and soon…Aeuropa City (as well as Planet Duniya) will soon awaken to a new tribulation…one of which may destroy the legacy once more.

* * *

**Far Away…**

Ataxia, the new Chaos watched the events of Duniya unfolding. The monster knew that the heroes will make it to the heights but it's not what is concerning him…it was the coming of age to Cosmos' latest descendant. Despite how slow time flowed here, another force of power is increasing inside of his prisoner.

The Dark One walked up to the glass tower and stared at the being inside of it.

"Those witches are such an annoyance," it spoke, "The powers of a Mahotsukai are nowhere as great as my own. _My curse_ will be irreversible to the point of no return once it's cast…but the only way it can work is that…light itself is snuffed out by its own power…and this curse does not meet the requirements. Oh, it will soon be broken…and everyone will think it's the end but…it's only the beginning of the end."

The prisoner inside the tube remained silent and still in a dead-like appearance. Ataxia chuckled before leaving the room.

**END OF SHORT STORY #3**

* * *

_**Shocking Revelations, the Casting of the Dark Curse, and the war of Witches vs. Heroes officially begin in:**_

**Short Story #4: The Swimmer's Daughter!**

Synopsis: After the events of _The Last World_, the newlyweds Alex and Kyle from Delta!Earth begin their next chapter in the outer suburbs of the Phoenix Metro called Desert Ridge. Through a surrogate mother, the couple welcome their first child to the family. See their years as this side story will contribute a new journey in _Cosmos World Chronicle_ and how the curse of Hollywood Heights is finally cast!


	9. Story 4: The Swimmer's Daughter I

**Story 4: The Swimmer's Daughter**

Synopsis: After the events of _The Last World_, the newlyweds Alex and Kyle from Delta!Earth begin their next chapter in the outer suburbs of the Phoenix Metro called Desert Ridge. Through a surrogate mother, the couple welcome their first child to the family. See their years as this side story will contribute a new journey in _Cosmos World Chronicle_ and how the curse of Hollywood Heights is finally cast!

* * *

**~Episode 1: The Family of Trials~**

**Planet Earth: Delta Timeline, Peoria, AZ Year 2052 A.D  
Peoria Sports Complex 83: Pinnacle High School Graduation Class of 2052**

Alex sat down next to his husband Kyle at the bleachers as families and friends gathered together to celebrate the seniors' graduation commencement. Sergio and his wife Rosie also joined in (as they previously voluntarily baptized the child to become godparents) as well as the mother of the Marotta brothers. Kyle's mother was also present to see her granddaughter walking the stage.

"All those years," Alex sniffed as he wanted to cry, taking out his handkerchief, "Our baby grew up so quickly!"

"They haven't even begun the pomp and circumstance," Kyle chuckled.

"I know…it's just…I couldn't be prouder for our Anastasia…" he said, wiping his own tears.

"I made plenty of cookies for us tonight," his mother added, "Where did she planned to go afterwards?"

"Ma, I told you, it's Arizona State University," Alex sighed.

"Take it easy on her," Sergi reminded him, "Her memory is…"

"Of course," he answered with a hint of sass.

"Oh Sandro," the younger brother sighed.

"I know…I'm sorry…" Alex replied more maturely, "Thank you for coming here with mom. It means a lot to all of us."

Kyle could only reply with a chuckled-nervous sweat drop while getting ready the video camera. The music finally played in the background as everyone roared in an applause of the graduating seniors walking across the field before sitting in their seats.

"There she is!" Kyle's mother squeaked happily as they saw Anastasia dressed in white gown with some streaks of red of the school colors. Her cap had the magic words, "For the team" with a photo of her and her swim team from the medley relay.

After everyone settled, the Valedictorian and Salutatorian presented their speeches along with the principal and the superintendent. While some of the speeches were well written, Alex closed his eyes for mere seconds to reflect all that happened before this happy day…

* * *

**Flashback: Year 2031 (1 Year Wedding Anniversary)**

The couple spent their first day of vacation up in the Northwest Pacific. They landed in Seattle where they spent time visiting the local attractions across town before having their reservation at the SkyCity Restaurant up in the Space Needle.

Kyle was in awe of how high they were up as Alex was happy to see him enjoying the time together. Once they were served with a glass of red and white wine, they clanged gently and took a sip. Alex could barely handle the white wine let alone Kyle's reaction of tasting red wine.

"I told you should've done white," Alex said trying hard not to chuckle.

"I've had a sip of Pinot Grigio but that sweetness was totally ooc," Kyle answered, "But yeah, red wine is much stronger."

"You don't have to finish it," he reminded, "I don't intend to finish mines. I rather cook wine in recipes."

"Right," his husband nodded, "Just look at the sunset babe…"

"Yeah, it's gorgeous," Alex agreed.

"So much has happened to us before we even got married," Kyle reflected, "But I'm glad we both found our way."

They both shared their memories from the last 8 years of dating, moving in together, finding their careers as well as visiting their families. Both sides of the family were initially disappointed but eventually grew into somewhat more accepting. It was slightly harder for Kyle's parents but it wasn't till after his dad died when the mother opened to him and only wanted him to be happy. The father was more conservative.

As for Alex's parents, it was hard for them also but Sergi mentioned that there are alternate ways to continue the bloodline. Sergi himself married his wife Rosie 3 years after his brother's near-death incident and homecoming. They had a son named Paolo and a daughter named Elena.

_The bigger question is, will Kyle agree to this_, Alex thought, _I feel like I'm doing all the executive control here…_

"Is there something wrong?" Kyle asked.

Alex rested his hand to Kyle's as they gently looked at their wedding rings. He warmed up his hand and explained, "My brother suggested an idea to me and I gave it some thought for a while…and I've been meaning to tell you this, but I'm worried I might come across as selfish. Not to mention this practice is banned in Arizona…"

_"I propose to send my sperm to a surrogate mother."_

Kyle's eyes widened a little at the proposition. Alex looked down but he felt the warmth of his hand giving him an answer.

"I know your father was a conservative and wanted a child from you…" Alex began.

"Yeah but he's no longer here and can't tell me what to do," Kyle answered, "My mother on the other hand…she might be able to help us find someone in California where it is legal."

"Sounds like we got a plan," he smiled as they gently clanged their glasses of wine again just as their meal arrived.

"Hehe, you used to be so self-centered," Kyle lightly teased.

"Shut up," Alex smirked.

* * *

**3 Years Later: San Francisco, California  
Center for Children & Family Law – SanFran Office**

"Congratulations Alex and Kyle," the lawyer smiled, "Your child is here. Are you ready?"

"Y-yes!" they both answered as Alex was clasping his hands together like a little kid.

"Also, just to remind you two, the mother has closed her connection to the child, so she will not be a part of your lives," the lawyer remined them before beckoning the delivery person.

The baby was covered in warm, white blankets, sleeping peacefully. Alex gently held onto her as Kyle smiled.

"She's beautiful…oh Anastasia…" Alex cried happily.

"Anastasia…Alice…" Kyle added.

"Right. We couldn't decide between those two names so well," he chuckled, giving the baby to Kyle to hold.

Alex signed the last of the form, indicating that the baby was delivered safely. They thanked the lawyer and the delivery person before leaving together as a new family.

* * *

**9 Years Later (2043 A.D)  
Desert Trails Elementary School**

Anastasia turned to the school bus after waving a goodbye to her father and daddy. Her school life was a very good start thanks to the excellent community standards and the top-rated education levels. Most of the classmates were nice to her and several them also had unique family relations of their own.

However, not everyone was happy…during recess. That's when things begin to spew around.

"Hey did you see that girl? I can't believe she doesn't know her mother," one of the girl whispered.

"I wonder if both of her dads were well…whores?" another whispered.

"I bet you she's not even their real daughter. Just an adopted person from those low-life's," the first agreed.

While Anastasia normally sat down with her friends together for lunch at the playground, their homeroom class was on a field trip today and one of her closest friends was absent too. This gave an open opportunity as the two bullies arrived and stepped on her metallic lunch box.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," the first said sarcastically.

"We just got a question for you," the second girl added.

Anastasia could feel her heart beating rapidly but she recalled her lessons from her father Alex when it came to bullying. Even though his example wasn't the greatest…could it be possible that she could fight them back?

"Are you really their daughter?" the first girl questioned.

"They don't look like you," the second girl agreed, "You look like you came from the streets like those hillbillies near downtown."

"W-why do you think…?" Anastasia began to reply but…

"Ooooh, she said so!" they gasped, "She really was from those streets rats!"

Anastasia was about to cry when the air around her began to swirl. The girls took a step back just as a towering cloud of dust loomed over the victim. Anastasia's hands began to glow, prompting the two bullies to stand back.

"W-what in the name of…?!" the second girl gasped as the students that were at recess stopped to see what was happening.

The noon aides (a group of old ladies who monitor the children) sounded the alarms and grouped everyone to get back to the school but the vortices died down slowly. Anastasia just sat there, puzzled before she was dragged in by the high authorities.

* * *

Anastasia sat down on her bed as Alex and Kyle were told of the incident and wanted to hear her point of view.

"I-it was an accident, I don't know how it even is possible!" she freaked out a little.

"Those girls that provoked you…" Alex said, "Did they trigger something?"

"Alex…" sighed Kyle, "Do you seriously believe that?"

"Says the husband who once did a magical transformation…" he said with a hint of sass.

"ALEX!" Kyle snapped, "That was supposed to be buried into the past!"

"F-father?" Anastasia was confused, "What is daddy talking about?"

"Please give us a moment Ana," Alex said as he and Kyle left the room, shutting the door before heading to the kitchen.

"How long as it been since you transformed?" Alex asked.

"Why are you telling her this now?" he replied, "We don't know how she even inherited magic!?"

"I didn't tell her anything," Alex narrowed his eyes a little, "But how long are we going to hide our past from her?! One way or the other the truth about our relationship will be exposed! That other me…that who you…"

"Don't even mention him," Kyle said, "She's too young! Can't you see how much we've worked hard to have a normal life?!"

"I do…but you also do realize that in a couple of years, she'll start to mature physically," Alex replied, "If it hasn't already begun…"

"That has nothing to do with her magic!" Kyle answered.

"It might…" he shrugged, "Or did you forget what our deal was with that dog? We had to pull a lot of strings to get back to this state!"

"…I was hoping that it was only a dream," Kyle said, "Just like when you wished to return home back then."

"I sacrificed my fame…for us…for OUR FUTURE!" he reminded him, "You know if I hadn't done that, we'd be forcibly separated because of the lies and the media! She has to know the truth!"

"So, this is what he meant…the price…" Kyle concluded, "A child would be born with magic…but why our girl?"

"I have a feeling someday…she won't be by our side," Alex feared, "That's the real reason why I had her taking swim lessons. As long as she's trained to swim and once we tell her everything…she'll be ready for whatever comes next."

They both returned to Ana's room as she was a bit shaken from what she could partially hear from their discussion.

"Ana, you have magic in your hands, but we speculate that you may have it from your father Kyle," Alex said.

"But…if I am blood to you daddy…" Ana began.

"It's because we share our love for each other as we love you," he smiled before turning a bit grim, "However…there is something that you must know. We will do our best to explain everything to you but understand that no matter what happens, we're a family and we will always find a way."

Alex led them to a room that he normally kept locked. It was an office space that Kyle uses sometimes but he pointed out to Ana that a fake wall was installed here to hide something of value. He and Kyle pushed carefully and the wall spun slowly, showing the young girl a small room filled with merchandise, posters, books, and movies from their collections.

"W-wow…" she began, "I-I've heard about these kinds of things from a fellow classmate…but…what's with all of the swimmer's stuff?"

"We told you a bunch of stories about us…except this one," Kyle explained, "Your father and I…we were both swimmers. However, I was more into these otaku things before I met him and just after we established our relationship, a story about these swimmers were produced as anime series. From there, we collected several of these things to remind ourselves that we too are swimmers."

"However, these swimmer boys are not just fictional characters…they exist," Alex revealed.

"W-WHAT!?" she gasped, "R-REALLY?"

"Yes…but it's complicated," he said, "In this world, they exist but not as swimmers…yet, these stories are real. The swimmer guys live in a different reality than our own. The guys that live here in our world have some sort of…different jobs."

"I…I knew something about this was a possibility!" Ana gasped, "I was right!"

"EEEHH!?" they gasped.

"Well when you had me trained to swim…I didn't realize you both were experts. Also, whenever I swam, I…I see things…magical things happening," she blushed.

"Let's go…" Kyle said.

"Right," nodded Alex, "Ana, go get your swim gear."

"W-Where are we going?" Ana asked.

* * *

**Paradise Valley Pool, Paradise Valley Recreation Center**

The trio arrived at the pool site as it was 5 P.M. There was only an hour left until closing but enough to figure out the potential of magic within Anastasia. The two husbands changed into their swim trunks and waited for Anastasia to finish hers. Thankfully there wasn't a lot of people at this hour but that didn't stop them from goofing a little.

"Hehe, this is just like old times," Alex flirted behind Kyle as he blushed. He hugged him and kissed on his ear.

"As much as I wanna respond to your playfulness, we have a job to do," he replied as their athletic bodies were making an aura.

"Yeah, I know…" Alex sighed, releasing the hug, "But I just hope she'll be okay doing this. Are we sure that pushing her like that is going to…?"

"You're the one who convinced me to do it," he said.

"Yeah but I didn't think you would dare to make her swim that much. She's still working on her stamina," Alex replied.

Anastasia was changed into her full sized-one piece swim gear with her goggles and cap. She met up with her fathers at a specific lane of the pool. The design of the gear reminded them of a certain character from the animated series.

"She looks just like…" Alex began.

"Don't even…" Kyle hushed.

"So are you going to help me with my swimming?" Ana asked as she sat on the diving block.

"Yes, we'll get you to warm up a little but then you are going to swim the freestyle for 100 yards," Kyle said.

Ana gasped at the amount. While she could swim that stroke, her limit was up to 50 yards one way or two separated 25 yards at a certain time.

"We've watched your progress and cheered for you Ana but soon you'll be 10 years old and you will be facing more challenges ahead," Alex explained, "Don't be afraid. Just take your time, there is no need to rush."

"A-alright," she answered, "I'll try."

After warming up on her legs and arms with the kickboard and swimming shorter distances, it was already 5:25. The two fathers were pleased to see how strong she has become but now it was time to help her unlock her potential.

She got onto the diving block, but a warm voice echoed in her head, _"Water…is alive…once you dive in, it bears its fangs…but there's nothing to be afraid of…move your hands to thrust that opening…your hips…"_

The young girl dove into the water and unleashed her freestyle. Alex and Kyle watched her go as they were in the next lane in case something happened.

"Keep it steady," Alex whispered, "Don't go too fast but have enough to flip the turn…"

Anastasia could feel the power of the water testing her juvenile muscles. It felt easy at first but the fact that her fathers wanted to see if she could swim 100 yards was a bit of a shock. In honesty, it was easier for her to swim the backstroke at 100 yards but the other three strokes were a bit of a challenge…but was it impossible?

Her heartbeat was beating faster and everything started to go dark but then…

A warmth of light from the sun illuminated the sight ahead of her as her mind wandered into the great beyond…

She saw what looked like her fathers but much younger, perhaps the same age as her standing on the diving blocks. While she was told that they never met each other until in their 20s, it was some sort of a message. At the whistle, the two dove in and also performed the freestyle, swimming side by side with her. Ana could feel the support from them, giving her hope to become stronger…

In reality, the two fathers dove off the blocks from each of the lanes, swimming with her side by side.

Ana continued to see the visions as she saw what looked like Alex winning several medals but also taking some shots into his arms in secret. Confused by that, Ana could feel her body starting to weaken as she as approaching the wall.

_T-this is terrible_, Ana thought, _did my father…cheated!?_

The images shifted again as it showed her father transforming into a monster while another man with a magical transformation came into the rescue and was joined by other guys as well. She recognized the area as the Phoenix Sky Harbor before seeing her father at the hospital and disappearing into thin air, leaving Kyle alone to cry and to forget…

It was mere seconds before she could hit the wall. Was she going to make it? Alex and Kyle managed to do the flip turns as everything around turned dark.

_I…I can't give up…they got married in the end, there must be a light at the end of this tunnel_, she realized_, but why do I swim?_

A small flicker of light glowed in front of her, showing her their happy wedding together. At the time, she made her flip turn with the ghostly images of younger Alex and Kyle before speeding up to reach to her dads.

**_I swim because I am looking to find myself where I belong_**, she realized and her body gave her newfound strength to speed up.

Alex and Kyle turned to see Ana catching up to them as they were approaching the wall. The three reached out at the same time as they breathed for air. Ana was coughing a bit with her body feeling…or was it not as exhausted?

"You did it," Alex smiled.

"F-father…I saw it…" Ana said, feeling a bit heartbroken, "Why did you do that to yourself? I saw what you did while you were at the Olympics!"

"I know…" he replied with a heavy and regrettable sigh, "I wasn't sure how I could tell you. The drug nearly killed me but your other father…saved me and I made a wish to start over. I realized that my happy ending wasn't to compete against others by instilling fear but…to have swim peacefully with a family who could believe in each other."

"You did a great job Alice," Kyle said, "Or Ana like he says."

"The story is a bit confusing to you now, but we'll tell you everything when you get older. For now, focus on school and on why you want to swim. And if you want to continue swimming you make sure that it is your wish…not because of mine, or his, or anyone else," Alex said.

"You're still not taking…" Ana began.

"Of course not!" Alex said, hugging her, "When I made that wish, magic was used to erase my medals and my fame from everyone's minds. It also caused the drug to be destroyed so it would never again be used."

"Alright," Ana nodded as they got out of the pool.

After they returned home and went to bed, Alex got up and went to the book again and flipped the pages to find something. Towards a specific segment of the book, there were torn and missing pages with faded pictures.

"What were these pages to begin with?" he muttered to himself.

* * *

Dr. Sergi opened his eyes, finding himself in a marble temple as he saw a man that looked like his younger self, with a book in his hands.

"Who are you?" the doctor asked.

"I am the same as you…" the younger Sergi replied, "You don't remember this, but I am so happy I finally got a hold of you."

"What are you talking about?" the older man questioned.

Sergi opened the book, showing the doctor a series of horrific scenes of death and darkness plaguing the world. In that instant, the doctor's eyes widened as he too…

"That time…my brother…" he muttered.

"I need you to do a favor and protect this book…until that day comes. Do not speak of this until Operation Resurrection is complete," the younger Sergi explained.

"Resurrection?" the doctor asked before waking up in bed with the same book in his hand. Rosie woke up next to him in confusion.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, "Honey, is that a book?"

"…I'll be back," he replied.

* * *

**5 Years Later: Year 2048**

As the young girl grew more mature in her early teens, her heart remained pure and innocent. Her two fathers were very supportive for her well-being, education, and of course, swimming. However, the recent events and for Ana's safety prompted Alex to research for some self-defense courses. After all, Ana was a girl both by gender and sex (that she gracefully embraced).

One day, she began to discover that her possibility for love was not just limited to boys…there was a girl on the swim team that was also rumored to have taken several karate and defense classes since she was 5 years old. After speaking to her, an idea sparked in her mind.

"Ana, are you sure you want to do this?" Alex asked as he took a sip of his espresso, "Not that I don't mind or have anything against that, but you never once thought about it when you were younger."

"Father, I…I just think it'll be worth something to do," she answered.

"We'll find a way to manage it with your school and swimming," Kyle said.

"Ana, are things going alright at school?" Alex added.

She looked down for a moment as her face was somewhat neutral but her heart was on fire.

"If you're feeling with another girl, don't be ashamed, I mean…we are both men here raising you," Kyle smiled.

"I just don't know if she's right for me but I was inspired by her karate skills," Ana said.

"Remember what I told you," Alex reminded her and she nodded before hugging them, feeling their approval.

"Are you ready this weekend?" Kyle questioned.

"Yeah," she replied.

* * *

**Lake Pleasant, 4****th**** of July Weekend**

As hundreds of people gathered at the Lake to celebrate the country's Independence Day, the trio went to a different location. From what Kyle recalled, the shrine was just up north of the lake, close to the mountains. While Alex was never at this place, Kyle told him about his other self investigating here with himself and the others.

"What happened to them?" he asked.

"The couple moved out and headed to Las Vegas…as for Ken, I have no idea…" Kyle said.

"It must have been cool to be a superhero," Ana replied.

"Well, to make things more convincing," Kyle answered as he pulled out his transformation wand as the others were in awe of it.

"After I married your father, I sealed my power into this pen and kept it hidden within our collections. Anyone holding it would think it's just an ordinary utensil but…I knew it contained the remnants of my powers," he explained before putting it back in his pocket.

They finally saw the familiar architecture from the Kamo Shrine in Japan. A man of olive-oiled colored hair and green eyes took a smoke from his pipe.

Ana recognized the man as Makoto but of course he was not as youthful; his age being just a bit older than the two fathers.

_Wow, he's grown up…not like in the stories that I've read and watched_, she thought.

"Been a long while since you last sought me," Makoto said to the guys.

"It was a happy beginning for us," Kyle replied.

"Indeed it was…and I see a new star is here," he nodded.

"How are Rei and Nagisa…?" began Kyle as Ana tried her hardest to not squeal at the names.

"They have moved onto a better place," Makoto said as Ana's expression changed to total shock; were they dead?

"Fear not little girl," the shrine priest added, "They're doing just fine."

"We have come here for…" Alex began when Makoto beckoned them to all come into the shrine. He reassured them that he is aware of Ana's condition.

"So tell me, who was responsible for her existence?" he questioned. Alex stated that he sent his sperm to a surrogate mother. Makoto examined Ana's right hand before using a tool to prick a sample of blood.

Three drops of blood fell into the paper that Makoto prepared for and watched as wisps of smoke evaporated from its contact with the bodily fluid.

"This is a sign…that someone is a carrier of magic," he said.

"Is it really from my father…Kyle?" Ana asked.

"No. This power comes from your mother," Makoto answered, "And she is no ordinary mother…she is a witch."

The two fathers looked at each other while Ana could feel her powers inside her stirring awake. Makoto quickly slapped on bracelet to dampen them down before she felt out of control.

"Why did this witch want my sperm?" asked Alex.

"Whoever she is, this person must have sensed your power and desire when you were in the Olympic era…after giving that up, that man erased it all for you but she must have retained her memories and sought out to find you," Makoto revealed.

"Where is this witch?" Kyle added.

"No idea…but if I were you, I'd stay away from this place…it's no longer safe," he said.

"The people at the Lake…" muttered Anastasia as she could feel the cries through her bracelets. She covered her head up as Alex tried to cuddle her in.

"What's going on?!" Alex cried out.

"That's impossible, you had all the kekkai's installed," Kyle replied, "Why is she hearing people screaming!?"

"That's because…**_ we showed up…"_** Makoto's voice shifted to a darker tone before transforming into a lady with brunette with hints of red and a skin so bright that it was hard to look at her.

"Y-YOU'RE THE WITCH!?" Anastasia gasped.

"I prefer Verrado or Ms. Egin Fria as my publicity," she replied, "Thanks to you Mr. Marotta, I have what I need to start my new project."

"You took my blood," Anastasia said, "What are you doing with it?!"

"Oh, that was just a little test. I'm not interested in your blood…not yet anyway," the witch replied.

Verrado waved her hand out, throwing the two fathers across the room before using her magic to trap them with vines, binding them. Anastasia tried to run but found herself stuck with vines as well grabbing her legs.

"ANA!" screamed Alex and Kyle.

"Foolish men…" Verrado growled, "You honestly think you can stop me? Soon…all of Phoenix will enter a deep sleep…during which I will open their hearts to darkness!"

Ana turned to see Verrado approaching to her, "You see…your fathers are right…the stories of those swimmer boys are real…but before you could even meet them in this world, Nagisa and Rei were sent home to Iwatobi and had their memories forgotten. As for Makoto, he sure fought his hardest but he was no match to my beloved family. Haruka and Rin are nowhere to be found but they'll soon face our wrath. I can't believe that bastard gave them new life and they were supposed to stay dead since the beginning!"

The young girl could feel her heart beating rapidly as the witch readied her magic. Before Verrado could fire, several arrows were flown, narrowly missing her by the hair. Ana turned to see someone hidden in a cloak.

"You release them now!" the voice ordered.

Verrado hissed and fired her magic as the cloaked person dove down and shot more arrows. Ana's magic exploded, releasing herself, Alex and Kyle from the vines.

"I didn't expect you here…Maya…" the witch replied.

"M-Maya!?" Anastasia gasped as the cloaked figured unveiled her face. Maya Banes was the girl from school who did swimming, self-defense, and now archery skills.

"Then again, how many children did you make by stealing the sperm?" Maya growled.

"I-It can't be! A-Are…" Ana began.

"Yes…you two are sisters," Verrado revealed, "Along with a couple of others scattered across the metro."

Alex and Kyle gasped in shock as they realized how menacing this witch was becoming. Every minute grew worse and worse as Kyle knew that he could not transform.

"You're lying!" Maya shouted.

"Am I? Look at your wrists…both of you," Verrado replied.

Maya and Anastasia looked at their wrists and saw a star-shaped symbol on their right side.

"The Star of Wicca is a symbol of our little cult of friends and family. We, the Witches of The Adversary are called to spread our philosophy of darkness, malice, and purity of our magic," Verrado continued.

"We refuse to join your little circus!" Maya answered, aiming her bow. Seconds later, her wrists were burning up, dropping her bow and arrow. Anastasia felt similar pain going through her hands.

"The more you continue to resist our organization, the stronger the pain on that symbol will inflict you," Verrado said, "If you refuse to join by adulthood, you will die."

"NOT MY DAUGHTER YOU BITCH!" Alex cried out as he charged over recklessly but Verrado vanished into the clouds of magic.

"Where did she go!?" Maya shouted.

"She's gone," a familiar voice was heard.

They turned to see two older men that looked like…

"Rin…? Haru?" Ana asked.

The two hunters walked into the scene with their katanas. They inspected the area before nodding in agreement that the witch was gone.

"I-Is Makoto…?" began Kyle.

"Yes. He's dead," Rin answered, "He fought his hardest against this witch but she's here in this town like a virus."

"And Rei and Nagisa?" Ana added.

"Disappeared," he replied, "They may be dead too."

"The witch said that she sent them back to Iwatobi," Kyle answered.

"It's a good chance she is lying," Rin stated.

"What is she after?" Alex asked.

"She's planning for something significant…we don't know what it is," Haru said, "It's best that you all get out of here as soon as possible."

"…I know where we have to go," Kyle replied, "The Guardian's Quail…we all need to go there, including you two!"

_**~To Be Continued in Episode 2: The Other Daughters!**_


	10. Story 4: The Swimmer's Daughter II

**~Episode 2: The Other Daughters~**

As the group managed to squeeze into the large SUV that Kyle owned, Ana and Maya were trying to figure out their relationship as sisters.

"With this witch…how did you know she was doing this?" Ana asked.

"You're not the only one with the same question," Maya said, "This witch has hijacked sperm donators and produced a set of children…including you and I as half-sisters. I found out one day when she killed my parents and told me that it was a price they paid. My…mother was unable to produce children so they did the surrogating process and that witch in disguised negotiated the plan."

"That's terrible," Ana replied, feeling almost wanting to cry. Alex turned to see her in tears as Maya hugged her.

"Ana…" Alex began.

"Papa…I love you and father…it's just…" Ana moaned.

"I know," he answered with his own tear, "But we'll do what we always do best…_when it comes to family…there is always hope."_

Kyle would agree to this as well but he was busy driving now. They soon arrived in Fountain Hills and made it to the fountain park. It looked pretty much the same as it was years ago except with more residents and plazas.

"The entrance to the headquarters is beneath the fountain spire. You have to jump a certain way to open the door," Rin explained.

They waited till sunset before treading their way across the pond and did the jump before finding themselves sinking with the water, entering through a slide and the water drained off to a ditch before refiling above.

"Is that water even clean?" Maya asked.

"There are showers here," Haru answered.

Ana still couldn't believe that despite all the years, the two of them were somewhat-youthful-ish (okay slightly aged but still good looking). What kept them this way?

By the time they got to the computer room, Rin and Haru smelled out blood. They all gasped to see everyone in the room slain to death. Ana nearly collapsed at the sight of horror but Maya and Kyle kept her from falling.

"What the hell happened here!?" Alex shouted.

"It appears you came too late," a voice was heard.

They turned to see Asahi and Ikuya (both much older) barely walking from the injuries they suffered.

"The witch was here," Maya said.

"She killed everyone here except a few of us who narrowly escaped," Ikuya answered, "Natsuya, Nao, and Ama along with us."

"So you guys are real!" Ana said.

"Of course we are…what did you expect?" Asahi replied.

"Let me guess…she's thinking about us in that other realm where we are all swimmers, right?" Ikuya added.

"Y-yes," she blushed a little.

"Well those realms are indeed real. We have some proof of it too. Take a look at this," Asahi said as he handed her a photo of what appeared to be Kyle and a group of guys along with a young man chasing after some monster at the airport.

"That man there with a weird cloak is from another realm based on the story you are familiar with," he continued.

"B-but what has to do with swimming?" she questioned.

"He is a swimmer too just like your father…but of course wields very powerful magic," Ikuya explained, "Of course we didn't get to know him enough to learn about his life but the last thing we heard was that his beloved partner sacrificed himself to save his life and he wanted to…bring him back."

Ana took a better look at the picture as she recalled seeing the visions years ago including this photo.

"We better get going," Maya said, "The witch is on the loose and we can't afford to let her destroy the city."

"How are we going to fight her?" Kyle asked, "I don't have the ability to transform into a senshi anymore."

"The only way to stand up to her is that if we find the other sisters," she replied, "It is said that a witch can be defeated if the children are found and fight against the darkness."

"Maya…do you think we'll find them through our swim team travels?" Ana questioned.

"It's a possibility but it can be anyone," Maya said, "I'll see you this fall when we get back to school. I'm staying at my aunt's up in Anthem."

"Alright," Ana nodded.

* * *

Once the family returned home, the fathers led Ana to the same room where they kept all their memories, the swimming merch, and other things. Now that she was a bit older to understand better, it was time to tell her…

"Ana, when we first showed you this room, all your thoughts about these stories are true. And yet they remain to be that way," Alex began as he took out the Blu-Ray set after doing some digging.

"These seasons and movies are just the starting point for you," Kyle added, "Now at any time if you don't want to watch these…you tell us and we'll bury it back to the past."

"I…I think I can handle it," Ana nodded as they handed the series over to her.

* * *

**3 Years Later (Year 2051 A.D.)**

With the knowledge of the swimming anime armed in her mind, Ana continued her journey through high school. She and Maya kept in touch with each other and tried to research the other two children from Verrado. The witch was not heard of for quite a while which calmed things down for a bit.

As for Haruka and Rin, they were last seen at the remnants of the organization before they completely shut down. Kyle tried to keep in touch with his former allies of the team but they too disappeared. Ana wanted to get more information about them but Kyle forbade her to do so.

It wasn't until a friend of Maya's discovered that Rei and Nagisa were rumored to be coming back to Arizona. There, they knew that it was important to find them and figure out more about this witch.

"Ana, don't you think this is getting too far?" Alex asked during a conversation.

"You were the one who gave me their story in some alternate realm where they were swimmers like us," she said, "Yet they're real people in this realm. I'm just glad they're not in their youthful forms or else an entire bunch of girls will go after them…or even gays for that matter."

"Ana…" Kyle sighed.

"You know it's true," she answered with a hint of a smirk before turning grim, "Or are you telling me this is all a lie?"

"It's just that they're stories," Alex answered, "I mean…as much as I wanna believe in them…you on the other hand…you're gonna be graduating soon."

"I know pops, we've already discussed that," she muttered.

The house phone rang. Kyle went to get it, "Hello?"

"Kyle? Is my brother home?" Sergi replied on the other line.

"He's here, hold on," Kyle said.

Alex took the phone, "Sergi?"

"Sandro…it's father…he…he passed away this morning," the younger brother said.

Alex nearly dropped the phone as his facial expression grew heartbroken. Ana gasped as she could only guess what this meant.

"Grandpa…" she shook her head before hugging Kyle and starting to cry in his arms.

* * *

**All Souls Cemetery: Days Later**

The trio flew into Cleveland the following day as they attended the funeral. Kyle's mother also joined as the other mother cried in Sergi and Alex's arms.

Sergi and his family welcomed them home as well. The children were also growing up and were in college but managed to take a day off to the funeral.

Despite all the crazy things the father did, the Marotta family and their relatives all shed tears of sympathy as the rainy weather contributed to the day.

"Grandma…" Ana hugged her.

"Ana…you've grown up so beautifully! Thank you so much for making time to come out here," she replied.

"Mom," Alex said, "Are you…?"

"Yes…I'll give it to her," the mother nodded.

* * *

After they returned to the mansion, grandma showed Ana her plethora of jewelry and explained, "When my time comes…this part of the collection goes to you. This is to preserve our family tradition and memory."

"That's a lot what you have," she complimented, "And beautiful…but wait. Did my cousin Elena get her portion?"

"A bunch of them were from my mom and even some from her family long before ours," the grandma added, "And yes, she already selected what she wanted."

"We'll have to open a safety deposit," Alex added, "When we get back that is."

"And soon I have to get back to my research project," Sergi replied, "Rosie?"

"Of course," she replied as they called Paolo and Elena to join up.

"We have to talk more often," Elena smiled to Ana.

"Yeah, I agree. I feel bad because we live so far away," she replied.

"Brother…I do need to speak to you for a moment," Sergi added as they all looked in confusion.

* * *

The two sat down on the porch outside as the younger brother sipped on some white wine.

"Have you found anything yet?" Alex asked.

"My research or…?" he began.

"You know…" the other brother sighed.

"Right. No…but…I am enrolled in that divination class but still nothing. I'm not one for superstitions as much but it's for the good of our family, isn't it?" Sergi replied.

"I'm just upset for what happened…" Alex answered, "Ana is a gifted daughter but I'm scared for her to be on her own. She has her friends but I have a feeling things are about to get more dangerous."

"I'll let you know if I find something," he vowed, "I promise."

* * *

Once the family returned home, Ana finished her remaining assignments for school before opening the books on the swimming anime. She analyzed each of the characters and tried to connect the dots to the real-life ones in this realm. Another dead end.

_Am I just going mad here, thinking that this is all too good to be true_, she thought.

She closed the massive book but just as it shut, her eyes widened a little. Then it all made sense.

_This book, where did it come from, how did my father and daddy get it?_

"Ana! Dinner's ready!" Kyle called her.

She took the book with her to the table as they were having some warm Italian wedding soup. Ana was a bit nervous to ask but she knew that hiding her thoughts about this wasn't going to get her anywhere.

"Father…this book here. Where did it come from?" Ana asked.

Kyle stared at Alex and the latter sighed softly before looking at her. There was indeed, another story behind this.

"This book is not just ordinary stories of fiction. As you know…that story is a real place. The book here is what dictates their world to be told based on those novels and the animations you've seen. This book…is alive," Alex stated.

"A-alive…?" Ana gasped.

"Yes…as long as it remains untouched by evil, the story you know is true. But if by some means that it has been altered by any way…" he added.

"I don't understand…if this book is alive…how can it be altered?" she asked.

"It's powered by magic," Kyle said, "If some sort of evil twists the story enough, everything that you knew about it…will be history."

"Now what I don't understand is how you both have it?" Ana added.

"A friend of ours gave us this story for safekeeping. From its origin, that realm that held such books released all stories to the endless fabrics of time. He also told us that only certain beings have gone there including these characters of this story from another universe," Alex continued.

"T-this is too much for me. If these stories are true, then why can't we go there…?" she began.

"Because if we go there, it will be history. That's why it must remain untouched. You can read the story many times over and over but if you fall into their world…everything you know will be twisted and destroyed," he answered.

Ana closed the book and ran off to her room. All of this was driving her nuts. Kyle stared at Alex in pure silence before saying, "Now look at what you've done to her belief!"

"I was hoping that it wouldn't come to that…but because of that dream and our encountered with Watanuki…we know too much. If Verrado finds out…" he muttered.

"She'll try to destroy it…" Kyle concluded.

"I'll talk to her," he replied, getting up.

After a half hour or so of silence, the husband returned to the table as Kyle anticipated on what happened.

"I told her everything," Alex said, "She's in a bit of a shock but she'll promise to protect the book."

"Right," he nodded, "For the sake of their lives…and ours as well…the alpha timeline of that anime will be told however fate dictates…"

* * *

**Hyatt Place Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada  
Elsevier Science World Conference**

Dr. Sergio talked to his fellow colleagues on their recent projects, catching up on some of their lives in the mix as well as learning new works from around the world. He was so happy to be back in one of his favorite environments of career.

"So how's your brother back at home?" asked Dr. Clara.

"He's doing fine, Ana is growing up so fast," he smiled.

"Just like your kids," nodded Dr. Jose.

"Don't remind me," Dr. Sergio chuckled.

Dr. Clara turned her head to see a group of scientists gathering up at one demonstration area. Sergio turned his head as well.

"Who's that?" he asked.

"It must be Dr. Egin Fria's project," Dr. Jose answered, "From what I've heard, her research is reaching out to the public. Their lab must be making some serious progress."

_Dr. Egin Fria_, Sergio thought, _could it be…?_

Sergio followed the two other doctors over to see the lady demonstrating her samples into her selected animals. One of the rats looked awfully sick but with a speck of some powder she used, it was back on its feet.

"Wow, her research is almost becoming available to the public. Is it in its final stages?!" Jose gasped in awe.

_That's impossible_, Sergio thought, _brother told me about that name…but I don't get it…she's older compared to the description._

He snuck off from the convention and headed his way back up the room in the Hyatt hotel. Already, his heartbeat was speeding up as if something bad was about to happen. Sergio opened the door to the room as he saw a feminine figure waiting for him.

"R-Rosie!?" he gasped but it wasn't her.

"It appears that you are very good at escaping my awe in my work," Verrado said, turning herself around as her disguise shifted forms, "Of course your reputation proceeds you."

"You're the witch! This is impossible! Your work is a fraud! No…it's worse than that! It's treason to science!"

Verrado burst out laughing before replying, "Science!? Since when does someone like you have the balls of a politician to declare my work treason?!"

"Science is not always absolute. Modifications can be made to reveal a different hypothesis!" Sergio argued, "One taint in your work and I am sure that mouse would've died! But more so, that powder and the effects on that mouse…"

"So you do recognize that powder I'm using…tell me, do you remember all those years ago when your brother tried to use them during the Olympics for his so-called happy ending?" she teased.

Sergio gasped in horror as his mind raced back to that time…

"I created the C-Durabolin drug a long time ago, long before you and those other pathetic stories were told. My intention was to see how fast I can make an army of my own for my organization of The Adversary," she explained, "Originally such a drug can mutate genetics to improve character's performance but too much of it is lethal. I'm sure you've seen some of the symptoms of it on your late father…"

"You…you MURDER!" Sergi screamed, "YOU KILLED HIM!"

She froze him with her magic before taking out the vial, "And now it's time to end your story as well."

The door busted open as Verrado saw the other doctors arriving in. The witch growled and vanished into the dark mist.

"You…DISGUSTING creature! You vile wretched existence! We will find the means to stumble you and end your plans before you can breathe them!" Sergi growled to himself before crying in agony.

"W-what the hell happened!?" Jose asked.

"Let him breathe!" Clara said.

After a few moments, Sergi took out his phone and sent a message to his brother. There wasn't much time left for whatever was gonna happen next.

"This doctor…she killed my father," he said as they all gasped in confusion.

* * *

Alex was up all night drinking hot tea when he discovered the message from his brother. He threw a small fit by throwing a drinking glass at the mirror when Kyle rushed in.

"That bitch!" he growled as he sniffed out tears, "As much as my dad would be annoying at times, WHY DID SHE HAD TO KILL HIM!?"

It took another 10 minutes for Kyle to get him back to his senses. Ana also walked into the kitchen to see what happened and discovered the text message from Uncle Sergi.

"We have to bring mom and my bro here to town. It's too dangerous for them to be on their own," Alex said.

"Papa," Ana hugged him.

"Anastasia…my Anastasia…" Alex replied, hugging her as he cried silently, "Promise me that no matter what happens to us…you must live on…you are dear to us."

* * *

**Few Days Later, During practice: Pinnacle High School Swim Club (Team Pioneers)**

Maya readied her whistle as Anastasia and a few other swimmers stepped up to the block. On three, the students dove in and worked on whatever the stroke they chose. Ana worked on her freestyle, heading on a strong lead.

_She's getting good, perfect for competition,_ Maya analyzed.

The young lady turned over at the wall on the flip turn and propelled herself. For the past several practices, she had not seen any visions or anything magical happening. Was it because of the drama going on in the family lately? Did she begin to doubt how true these stories were? Or was it something else…?

At the last second to the wall, one of her opponents narrowly beat her by a microsecond or so. Ana gasped was felt incredibly shaken. She turned her head to see who won.

Laura Otto stepped out of the pool as her girlfriends were excited to see her beat Ana. Maya helped her half-sister out of the pool with her hand.

"It's alright, don't blame yourself. You still had a good performance," Maya reassured her, "I've kept record of all the times so it doesn't make sense how she caught up to you."

"Of course," Ana nodded as she saw Laura's smirked expression.

From there, the girls team were done for the day and they were all changing up to go home. Ana was listening to the others talking to Laura about today.

_Bitch please_, she thought, _it's probably a fluke. Oh my god, did I just say that? I must be rubbing off from my father…_

"I heard her mother was a prostitute," one of the girls gossiped, "The father was driven insane that he decided to marry a man to make out all his pleasures."

"It's probably no doubt that she doesn't have anyone who loves her," Laura agreed.

Ana had enough of this so she decided to go to them to confront. Even though her father did the wrong choices of hitting someone in school and doing those fights, she had enough of people talking shit that they didn't know about.

"Ohhh is daddy's little princess gonna cry?" Laura asked.

"Girl you ain't a swimmer with those fake ass tits!" she growled, "You're just a fluke like yo mama!"

Some of the other girls gasped in shock by those words. They never knew that Anastasia had the ability to cuss out like that.

"Now if you excuse me, I am going home now to my proud fathers who are more than happy to see me become a queen," Ana answered more calmly.

Laura grunted angrily and was ready to throw a punch at her face but another girl grabbed her, "STOP IT! Why do you have to harass her!?"

She turned to see her friend Niki holding her back, "Let go of me, I have to sock that bitch!"

Maya whistled harshly and snapped, "That's enough! This behavior you girls are having is making me reconsider who will swim in the competitions! Back off now or else none of you will be going to regionals!"

"She started it!" Laura began, "Ana…"

"I've heard EXACTLY what went down Laura," Maya answered, "You don't know Anastasia and you have no right to call her out on her family like that!"

"But she called my boobs fake," Laura begged.

"Girl please. Anastasia has her reason to snap at you and calling your tits fake should be the LEAST of your worries," Maya snapped, "If you wanna swim in the regionals you better be sure this timing you have today isn't your last! Do I make myself clear?!"

"Y-Yes captain," Laura breathed barely before turning to her locker in total embarrassment.

_Anastasia, I hope you're alright_, Maya thought.

* * *

Ana was walking her way home when she turned to see Niki rushing up to her.

"Ana! I wanted to apologize for what Laura said about you! I couldn't believe she…" Niki began.

"It's alright. I shouldn't have snapped out but…" Ana began before sighing, "My family has suffered a lot for several years."

"Look, if you want to talk about it, I can listen. I swear to you I won't tell Laura," Niki said.

"…very well. Do keep it a secret between us," Ana replied as they sat down on a bench.

The 17-year old explained to Niki about her father Alex being an Olympic swimmer who secretly used drugs to enhance his swimming as well as how he and Kyle got together. Niki gently nodded but it wasn't until when Ana revealed who her mother was…

"H-hold up Ana," Niki replied, "You mean that…w-we're related?!"

"Ehh!?" Ana gasped, "Y-you're…"

"…afraid so," Niki sighed, "I knew it…I knew something about you and Maya were interesting. My magic allows me to sense people with great potential."

"I see," Ana lowered her head to the side, "Our mother ruined your life too. What did she do?"

"I lost my real mother when I was 5 years old. Before I was born, she suffered an accident that resulted in a complete radical hysterectomy. They researched for surrogates and that's when she showed up…" Niki revealed silently.

"The witch…" Ana muttered.

"She appeared to us as an ordinary person and promised a deal…but it turned out that after I was born that she would have visiting rights. My other mother was losing her sanity the more that bitch spent time with us," she continued, "In the end she took her life and also my father's."

"I-I'm so sorry!" Ana gasped as Niki spilled some tears.

"And Maya…our captain is she…?" Niki asked.

"Yes…that makes us three. We've been searching for the other children born from her," Ana replied, "We welcome you to join us in our search. We think she's going to do something bad to this town and if we work together…"

"We can stop her," Niki finished, nodding her head in agreement, "Then we just need to find the last family member!"

Ana smiled as they both hugged.

* * *

**Next Day:**

It was another run of practice at the club when the students (after climbing out of the water) collapsed from appeared to be exhaustion but…

"W-what the hell is going on?!" Niki gasped as the girl next to her lane had no pulse.

"Call the ambulance!" shouted Ana.

"On it!" Maya said as she took out her phone. The other students who didn't go to the pool were getting scared by this sight. Ana tried to perform CPR.

"I'm afraid medicine and hospitals won't break my little project," a voice hissed as she magically took the cellphone from Maya's hands.

Everyone turned to see a floating female being dressed in a heavy cloak followed by a group of other hidden-cloaked beings.

"It's you…" Ana growled.

"Indeed," Verrado replied, using her magic to put the other swimmers asleep, "Do not worry. It's just temporary. I wanted to have a word with the four of my girls."

"You're not taking us to your team!" Maya shouted as she readied her bow and arrow. Verrado used her magic to heat up their wrists again as the trio screamed in pain.

Laura was confused and horrified as she realized that she too was awake. Verrado turned her head towards the young girl; her evil gaze frightened the swimmer. For a split second, he wrist also was on fire as the same star appeared before her.

Verrado released the tortured and analyzed the four girls.

"Still resisting the temptations, I see. This may turn out very interesting for the future," Verrado answered.

"Are you going to kill us!?" Ana shouted.

"Oh I'll get to that…" Verrado replied, "It seems as though…you are protected by something. Out of my girls…you are very different Anastasia."

"You lay a finger on anyone of us…" threatened Niki.

Verrado waved her hand and threw Niki, Laura, and Maya down to the ground before approaching to Anastasia.

"Despite your strongest heart of innocence, your belief is shrinking a little. You're questioning if those pitiful stories your father told you…are true. It's the very reason why you allowed my Laura to beat you. Now answer this question…**_will you sacrifice her happiness for yours? Do you wish to achieve what your father failed to do?_**"

Laura barely looked up to see what was going on. Her mind went wild as she wanted to disbelief all of this…yet here she is…about to suffer a terrible comeuppance...

"No one is gonna be sacrificing anyone…anymore!" Anastasia answered as she revealed a glass bottle filled with some powder. Verrado gasped as she recognized it. Laura also recognized that battle in her hands.

"H-How the hell did you…!?" Verrado growled.

"Next time, make sure you clean up your shrine because my magic allows me to detect other magical things and what they do," Anastasia answered with a hint of sass.

Before anyone could protest, Anastasia slammed the glass down and unleashed its magic to entangle Verrado.

The witch growled and breathed heavily as the magic unleashed grabbed her wrists before choking and vanishing her to the unknown.

The spell wore off as the other students woke up. Laura was beyond shaken in terror as she looked at Niki, Ana, and Maya.

"S-Stay away from me!" she cried out.

"Laura, we're not here to hurt you. Can't you see Ana saved our lives!?" Maya asked.

"Thus, you are the final half-sister to us," Niki added, "Kindly enough tell us how you knew her?"

"N-No…it can't be…she's not my mother!" Laura panicked in denial, "My real mother…s-she…"

She started to feel dizzy after all the adrenaline and the blood pressure. Maya caught he as she fell while reclaiming her cell phone to call the ambulance.

The other swimmers were confused and somewhat terrified of the scene but Maya dismissed them for the next few days, telling them that something unexpected was going on and they needed to take some time off due to this emergency.

The trio rode on the ambulance with Laura, knowing that they had to start figuring out how they can be ready for this upcoming battle should the witch find them again.

"I think we all have untold stories to share…" Maya said.

"Ana, you have told us about yours except to Laura…so I guess I'll return the favor and start my story first," Niki answered.

**_Major Revelations conclude in the final episode of Book 0, Episode 3: For my Family..._**


	11. Story 4: The Swimmer's Daughter III

**~Episode 3: For My Family…~**

**The Story of Niki Santiago  
18 Years Ago: Chandler, AZ**

Dr. Rodrigo Santiago was at his day job as a lecture professor at Arizona State University. Once he finished for the morning class, his phone vibrated on a message.

It was from the Mayo Clinic where his wife was just admitted to the ER. Terrified, he sent out an emergency email to his afternoon class that the lecture is cancelled for the day. It took him at least 40 minutes to reach the hospital where he received word on where his wife was at. The receptionist told him that she was about to go into the OR on a radical hysterectomy.

"It was a car crash that injured significantly in the perineal and part of the abdomen region," the receptionist explained, "The surgeon and doctors will explain more."

When he had a moment by himself, he cried with anger and depression. It was only a week ago or so that his wife was officially pregnant and now there was a high risk that they will lose their child.

The next day, the wife woke up in the recovery room as her husband held onto her hand, trying hard to not be depressed.

"¿Qué me pasó?" she asked.  
(English: What happened to me?)

"Sofia, tuviste un accidente automovilístico ... y lo enviaron a urgencias," he replied.  
(English: Sofia, you had a car crash…and they sent you to the emergency room.)

"¡No! ¿¡Nuestro bebe!? Hice...?" she gasped.  
(English: No! Our baby!? Is…")

The husband started to tear up and she realized that something bad happened. She tried to deny the truth from being heard but…

One of the doctors walked in and revealed that a willing mother was selected to take the fertilized egg they rescued. The two looked at each other and cried with this miracle being told.

"Dios te salve María, ¡gracias!" Sofia cried in relief as she threw a kiss in the air and praying the sign of the cross.  
(English: Hail Mary, Thank you!)

From there, the nurse walked in to check on her current stats. Rodrigo asked about who will carry the child and was told that they will prepare the documents and meet with the surrogate the next day.

* * *

**Next Day: Meeting with Ms. Egin Fria**

The two met with the surrogate who volunteered to help their child development. Egin explained that she has done it once before and has gained experience from it. They talked in both English and Spanish.

"I always pray to god, Jesus and Mary," Sofia explained despite her accent.

"Your English is pretty good," Egin replied.

"T-Thank you. I try," she blushed a little.

"We really appreciate you helping us," Rodrigo smiled.

"Of course," Egin answered.

* * *

**9 Months Later: One Day after birth…**

A baby girl was born and the couple were in awe. Sofia named the daughter Niki. It was a very exciting time for them. Ms. Egin Fria announced that she was going to be on vacation but plans to come back to town at some point.

When the witch returned to her hideout, she saw two guys battling against some nerbils she created. They slaughtered them to bits. Verrado chuckled and cast a small enchantment on them to track their location.

The Santiago family arrived at their new home in Chandler within the Las Casitas del Sur neighborhood. Sofia held onto the baby while Dr. Rodrigo returned to teach his lectures at the ASU campus in Tempe.

As she tucked her to the baby bassinet, a familiar voice was heard, "Such a lovely child…"

Sofia turned to see a woman that looked like Ms. Fria but her outfit was different.

"¿Quién eres bruja?"  
(English: Who are you witch?!)

"It appears you don't remember me," Verrado answered as her clothes and make-up shifted to her civilian form. Sofia gasped as she turned to protect her daughter.

"¡Teniamos un trato!" Sofia shouted.  
(English: We had a deal!)

"Well of course we did, you have the baby but now you must finish the bargain," Verrado explained.

"And that is?" Sofia asked in her thick accent.

From there, the family worked with lawyers to set up visitation rights to Ms. Fria. Sofia wanted to tell her husband that this bitch was a witch in disguise but Verrado already warned her about a prophecy should she tell him the truth. Ms. Fria could visit the child on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons (only when both parents are present). Each time, Ms. Fria would bring some gifts to the baby but Sofia would sometimes throw them out in secret (out of fear they were enchanted with magic).

* * *

**5 Years Later:**

Niki was all packed up and ready for her first day of school in Kindergarten. Sofia and her husband took some photos her all dressed up in her uniform and wearing her backpack.

"¡Mamá, papá te amo!" Niki smiled.  
(English: I love you mommy and daddy!)

The bus arrived and they exchanged a hug and a kiss with their daughter. Niki waved her hand out in goodbye before stepping onto the school bus. They turned around to see a group of cloaked figures standing at the doorway and the porch of their house. Sofia freaked out a little as Rodrigo protected her.

Verrado revealed herself and said, "The time for your daughter's awakening is near."

"You lay a hand on our daughter…" began Sofia in her accent.

But Verrado didn't listen. She waved her hand to cast out magic and put the parents asleep.

"It is time…" she turned to the other witches, "They'll be of good use for our cause."

"And what about the daughter?" one of the other witches asked.

"I'll have her memories altered and be sent to an orphanage," Verrado said.

* * *

**Present Day: Mayo Clinic**

"So, you never saw your parents again?" Ana asked tearfully.

The trio were in the waiting room for Laura to regain consciousness. From what the doctors and nurses found, Laura was only unconscious of shock but they'll install the IVs and monitor her heartbeat.

"…That's right. That witch raised me for a bit until I was given to the adoption center," Niki answered, "And that the powers in my heart told me to find the rest of the spawns of Verrado."

"Including us…" the other girl muttered.

"We're so sorry!" Maya replied as she hugged Niki as the latter cried.

Alex and Kyle finally arrived on scene as they both received text messages from Ana.

"Darling, I can't help but see these girls having to suffer so terribly…can't we do something?" Alex asked.

"Ana, do you want your friends to stay over with us for a bit?" Kyle added.

"We'd gratefully appreciate it!" Niki answered.

"We'll sort this out when Laura wakes up," Maya nodded, "I'm still living with my aunt but I do intend to move closer to the metro after graduation."

* * *

**The Story of Laura Otto  
Outskirts from the Herisia Village (Planet Duniya)**

**5 Years Later After Imprisoned:**

Abigail marked another dash on the wooden wall and sighed to herself. She had no idea how much time has passed but the scary part is that during her stay in this tower led her to have nightmares of being imprisoned.

_Why does it feel like this happened before,_ she thought, _it's like a nightmare that'll never go away!_

She got up and walked over to one of the cabinets where she found a small box. Curious, she touched it but felt a jolt of vision entering her brain. Annoyed, she grabbed it again to study its design. It was small and black with a white ellipse on it marked with strange symbols.

Verrado, despite imprisoning her would come to the tower to check up on her as well as leaving her a supply of food from the garden. At first, she refused to eat but then after a while, she gave in as she could not afford to lose her own life. And now it was time for curiosity to play out…

Abigail opened the box and waves of magic leaked out and poured into her shoes.

_C-could it be_, Abigail thought as she closed her eyes and clicked her heels three times…thinking about her family in her head…

* * *

**Planet Earth: Delta!Timeline, Year 2043 A.D.  
Tsukishima Manor, Litchfield Park, Arizona**

The two brothers peaked down the wishing well as Akiteru threw another coin after praying for a miracle. Kei lied down on the grass and watched the skies that were filled with lanterns.

"You're wasting our family fortune with you throwing those coins and paper lanterns," Kei muttered, "Besides, they're gonna serve desert soon. We should go in."

"I can't give up on our mother Kei," Akiteru said, "These pennies…I know they can make wishes come true!"

"It's been 5 years, Akiteru…" Kei replied.

"I know it's silly to believe but…something feels different this evening…" Akiteru prayed.

A gust of wind struck the area followed by a voice, "My boys…"

The two turned to see Abigail appearing to them as her shoes stopped glowing its magic. Kei stood in disbelief while Akiteru's face began to tear up, "M-mother…?!"

Akiteru ran to hug her as Abigail also cried in joy, hugging him tightly, "Oh you're so grown up!"

Abigail looked at the skies and added, "The lanterns…you used them to bring me home! And, oh the wishing well! Your wish brought us back together!"

"I'm so happy you're home!" Akiteru cried happily.

Takahiro arrived at the scene as he was struck in shock to see Abigail standing and alive. He also joined in for the hug as the spouse turned to him.

"A-Abigail!? I thought you were dead!" Takahiro gasped, "I searched you for months but…!"

"It was a trick…a witch promised me that you'd all thrive without me. My side of the bargain was to be locked away in a tower…but now I've finally escaped and found all of you!" she explained, touching Takahiro's cheeks as if she wanted to kiss, "My love for this family has survived all this time! And now I'm ready to share it again with you all!"

"Who's that papa?" a small voice was heard.

Takahiro gasped, "Go back inside Laura!"

Everything grew silent and awkward as the last two sentences brought reality back.

"W-what did she mean by papa?" Abigail asked with a bit of disbelief while trying hard to no rudely stare at the girl.

"…she's my stepdaughter," he answered after a long pause.

Another lady stepped into the scene, "Takahiro, what's going on?"

Abigail's eyes widened in shock, realizing that he indeed had moved on without her as it was part of the price that the witch took.

_Not only she locked me up, that bitch allowed these two to be married,_ her mind screamed.

"This is my wife," Takahiro revealed.

"My name is Serena…and you are?" asked the lady.

"Abigail," she answered, maintaining composure, "Now if you excuse me…I need some time to talk to my sons."

"Give her a few minutes," Takahiro said to Serena.

Abigail walked with Kei and Akiteru around the fields nearby. Akiteru could tell that she was freaked out and broken but she was trying her best to hide this pain.

"When did your dad married her?" asked the mother.

"Last year or so," Akiteru answered, "The mother lost her husband during a mining accident several years prior. She tried to raise Laura on her own but then she met our dad."

"I see. So, this girl isn't even related to us except marriage," Abigail nodded.

"Yeah but Laura-chan is so nice!" Kei answered, "I enjoy talking to her and she's creative!"

"I'm sure you all get along with her very well," Abigail replied.

"Are we going to be alright like this?" Akiteru asked, "I can tell you're upset."

"I'd be lying if I wasn't," she answered sadly, "I think it's a part of what the witch did to me…she really took my husband away but…as long as I have you two…at least there's a bit of hope for some happiness to come back."

Kei lowered down his head while Akiteru smiled, "Of course mother! We'll never stop talking about you! Your sacrificed saved all of us! You're a hero!"

It was those last words that made Abigail to start crying as she hugged her sons. Kei did manage to wiggle his way out to see his father arriving in with the new wife. Abigail held onto Akiteru and watched in confusion of Kei's behavior. Kei was standing more with Serena and Takahiro…

As the time passed by, Abigail was welcomed back into the family but because Takahiro was married to Serena, the first spouse had her own room in the manor on the far side. To prevent any signs of awkwardness of this potential poly-relationship, Abigail was treated as a servant. She was permitted to see her children as much as she wanted (except for Laura).

On September 27, it was Kei's 10th birthday and the manor was filled with a lively audience dressed in Victorian attire (as Serena was descended from a British family). The music was calm and serene with violin and harp in the background. Abigail walked around as she carried a tray with mango lemonade in small glasses.

Serena saw her doing this so she excused her conversation with her friends and walked up to her.

"You are amazing…this mango lemonade is the best in all of the Arizona desert," Serena complimented.

"Takahiro said that it was your favorite," Abigail said.

"As lovely as they are…why are you working today? It's your son's birthday. You should be celebrating," the second wife answered, "Please excuse me."

Abigail was struck by this and wanted to throw a fit but Takahiro was nearby and said, "She's trying you know."

The ex-spouse turned and replied, "I know. It's just…been very difficult for me to transition."

The three kids were laughing happily and talked to each other like best friends. They watched as Serena approached to them.

"Looks like well they're getting along," Takahiro observed, "Perhaps as parents we should take a cue from them."

"Taka, she's looking after all of them and I'm not interested in her's…" Abigail replied.

"I know you see it that way," he answered.

"I'm alone here!" she sniffed, wiping her tear off. Taka hugged her to calm down a little and she whispered in his ear, "I gave my gift to Kei and he didn't even smile at me!"

Abigail watched as Kei, Akiteru, and Laura opening a box as they gasped in awe. Kei looked at the dinosaur plushie set and turned to Serena, _"It's amazing mother, thank you, thank yooouuu!"_

She let go of Takahiro and stormed her way back to the manor, putting down the tray as her anger and sadness were on the rise. Abigail picked up a metal cup from the kitchen and walked to the living room where a floor mirror housed some valuables. She threw at it, breaking it into thousands of shards as the jewelry flew around from the epicenter.

"You're too strong for tears," a familiar voice was heard

Abigail turned to see Verrado in her witch cloak, sitting on the couch before answering, "If you're here to put me back into your tower…"

"I'm not…" Verrado sighed before resuming, "As a matter of fact I admired how you managed to escape based on missing memories you have."

"Missing memories? I'm the only me!" she said.

"Indeed, you are you…but of course you have forgotten yourself because of entering to this blank slate. But now I wonder how long it'll be before you truly wake up," Verrado continued.

"Tell me, did you put them together?" Abigail asked, changing the subject to present.

"The deal was honored…they all sleep safely in this cozy mansion," Verrado answered, "What they did afterwards was not by me."

"Why?"

"When you sacrificed yourself for their happiness, I noticed that you have a pure heart but with those locked memories deep within you…if they come to surface…you might wind yourself back to that era," Verrado explained.

"You're not making any sense!" Abigail said.

"Of course not…but that depends on what you'll be doing next," the witch stared at her eyes. She got up from the couch and summoned a glass vial, "You can have your family back…Kei…and Takahiro. All you have to do is to poison Serena's drink."

Abigail threw the vial down as it shattered.

"Serena is an innocent person who didn't knew about this mess! I'm not gonna hurt her!" Abigail answered.

"If you are what you say you are then perhaps overtime your path will bend back to happiness. If not…then there's always my way…" Verrado answered, leaving the recreated vial on the shelf for Abigail to see.

* * *

**Back to the Hospital Scene:**

Laura finally woke up as the other girls, Alex and Kyle waited.

"W-where…" she breathed.

"You're in the hospital," Maya said.

"W-where's…papa?" Laura muttered.

"F-father?" Ana asked.

The patient sat up on her bed as she could feel a wave of memories hitting back to her back from childhood. It was finally clear now to why her life was shrouded in twists and turns of joy and pain.

"My mother…Serena was sterile so she granted a wish to the witch to bore a child as a surrogate," Laura said, "As part of her plan, she put us into another family…with a different father and two boys. My real father died not long after I was born. One day the mother of that family returned to us and soon after my mother disappeared…

"The reason why I made fun of you Ana…was because I had no one to guide me growing up," she confessed.

"What happened in that family you stayed with?" Maya asked.

"…That's when that day happened," Laura closed her eyes and recount the last part of the story.

* * *

**Inner Flashback: Flagstaff during winter**

In the heart of the colder months, the family along with Serena and Laura were all spending time in a lodge resort with plenty of room to play around, swim, relax at spas, and other activities. Abigail watched her two sons playing with Laura happily in the pool.

_Laura is an innocent child_, Abigail analyzed, _just like Akiteru…but Kei…you…_

"Is something the matter?" Takahiro asked.

"Oh no, I'm fine," she replied, "But where's Serena?"

"She wasn't in the room, maybe she went to a gift shop?" he shrugged, "I'll go back."

Abigail watched as he walked away before taking out the semi-empty vial. She used it last night during supper and wondered if the plan worked. It seemed as if…

A few hours have gone by before they contacted the police and had to set up a search party to find the other spouse. The three kids were worried but Abigail took this chance to comfort them.

"It'll be alright, we'll find her," she reassured.

The husband was somewhat terrified but he didn't want this to ruin the trip completely. With a nod, they decided to go outside for some ice skating.

The kids put on their warm jackets, scarves, and hat and their pairs of ice skates. The three of them had a slow start but once they were stable enough, they explored around the pond but maintaining certain distance as directed from the parents.

"It feels like my days in the tower is just a distant memory…the three of them really do look like siblings," Abigail smiled.

A small gust of wind kicked in as Kei's hat flew off towards the pond. Laura chuckled and said, "I'll get it."

She skated her way over as tiny hairline cracks began…

"I've been thinking…also…of that moment you sacrificed for us. It's the ultimate form of love," Takahiro nodded.

Akiteru saw the cracks growing from hairline to more visible. With a nod to Kei, they began their way over towards their sister.

"Hey, Laura!" Akiteru cried out, "The ice!"

"Brother it's getting worse!" Kei gasped, as he turned around, "I'll get mom and dad!"

Laura retrieved the hat and began her way back with Akiteru as they tried to avoid the cracks but it continued to follow them. Abigail and Takahiro were about to share a kiss. Kei was almost at voice range to call out the parents when a loud splash was heard. The younger son turned to see and gasped.

"OH...MY...GOD!" Abigail cried loudly as Takahiro rushed over to the site of the fall before diving in. Kei cuddled in close with the mother as she finally felt that similar emotion from all those years ago.

"He'll get them…he'll get them!" Abigail prayed while Kei nodded.

After a slow minute, the surface exploded with ice and water as Takahiro brought up one of the children. Upon a closer inspection, Abigail recognized Laura as the step-daughter breathed heavily on her return of consciousness.

"That's Laura…WHERE'S OUR SON!? WHERE'S AKITERU?!" she panicked loudly.

"H-He was too fast to the a-abyss…" Takahiro breathed.

Abigail dove in and found Akiteru's body stuck on some flora. Taking out a knife, she cut through the plants and brought him to the surface. Kei screamed briefly in horror while Laura hid behind the father. She tried to perform CPR on Akiteru while the others contacted the emergency to take him to a nearby hospital in the main city.

"N-No…A-Akiteru!" Abigail whispered painfully in horror.

He was declared in comatose by the doctors. Abigail's mind went wild from pure sadness to rage and disappointment that Takahiro only saved Laura. While she had no hard feelings for her, it was clear that Takahiro still favored the girl than the oldest son. When there was no one in the room (no doctors, her husband or any of the kids), she grabbed Akiteru's body out and snuck her way to locate Verrado using a map she was given that included with the vial.

It took about 45 minutes but she located another garden like the first one on Duniya and brought him in. The witch turned to see the mother holding the near lifeless body.

"You have to help him! He fell through the ice…he was trying to save someone!" Abigail cried.

"What a terrible waste of a promising soul…" Verrado gasped slightly as Abigail gently put Akiteru's body on the garden and the witch kneeled to use her magic.

"T-this magic…" Abigail muttered.

"I'm putting one last breath into him. As long as it remains in his lung, he holds between life and death without any medicine," the witch explained.

"T-Thank you…He's my everything!" Abigail sniffed her tears.

"I'm afraid gratitude alone will not reawaken him," Verrado said, "This time Akiteru will be the one going into the tower."

"W-What?!" gasped Abigail, "He's done nothing wrong to you!"

"You brought him to me for help and now he must pay the price," Verrado explained.

"Then take my step-daughter, Laura!" Abigail answered, "She was never my blood to begin with! You knew I was going to poison Serena!"

"Silly girl…" Verrado laughed, "Laura…isn't Serena's daughter as she believed to be. She only thinks it's hers thanks to what I call…a surrogating."

"W-what…i-it can't be!" Abigail gasped, "L-Laura…is…!?"

"Indeed…" Verrado hissed, "Laura is my offspring…one of which of the many others who will be born from. Now then, say goodbye to your son…"

The witch dug through her cloak but couldn't find what she was looking for…

"Looking for something?" Abigail asked as she revealed the glass bottle. Verrado gasped.

"A source of your magic is in this bottle. I'm going to take it and save my son while you'll be powerless to stop me!" she explained.

"Careful, you stupid mortal!" Verrado hissed, "Don't dabble with forces you cannot understand!"

"Oh, I'm gonna be very careful with this," Abigail vowed, "After all…you're the one who will pay the price for locking me away all those years!"

She threw some of the powder to paralyze the witch before taking Akiteru out along with the remaining powder.

"Don't worry my dearest I promise…**_I will bring you back_**," she whispered.

* * *

**Final Hospital Scene:**

"In the end, I lost all my family members…I had to fend for myself," Laura concluded, "Then I was adopted by someone by the name of Ms. Egin Fria but she had another name as Ms. Otto."

"That's the name of Verrado!" Alex recalled, "That witch used an alias to hide her disguise!"

"She fucked all of us. That witch cultivated my magic…in hopes to make me a pawn. When I started to take swim lessons, she was against it until she discovered you all as swimmers also," Laura sighed with a low hiss and griping her fists. At this point, her face filled with tears, knowing that she too is blood to the other girls.

"It appears our stories are all intertwined by this trainwreck," Maya agreed.

"Father, daddy, what are we going to do?" Anastasia asked.

"Since the Guardian's Quail is no more and I have lost contact with my fellow senshi…I think it's up to us that we must prepare for whatever is yet to come," Kyle said.

"Wait…are you suggesting that we use magic?" asked Niki, "That's what that bitch wants from us, right!?"

"She wants us more than just our magic…I've heard her talking with others like her and yet she didn't even erase my memories of me eavesdropping," Laura said.

"You girls need to learn to stand united so that no one will try to take it away from you," Alex explained, "Let me give you some advice…if you all wanna take down that bitch, the first thing is that you all must forgive yourselves. And I'm not talking about what happened today or yesterday…I'm talking about your origins however you ended up in such a tragic mess."

"What he means is that it's time that you girls stop hating yourselves and stand up together as a team. We believe in you and now you gotta believe too!" Kyle added.

Anastasia turned to the girls with a small smile, "We can be both heroes and swimmers! For the team and for the future! We'll save our home and protect our families and friends who are dear to us!"

_"I swim because I wanna __**belong**__ to people who I can relate to!"_

Niki grunted lightly and added, "I swim because my strong **_faith_** knows my family is watching me from the heavens!"

Maya smiled and shared her view, "I swim because I want to **_lead_** and get justice for all!"

Laura tearfully wiped her face and added between breaths, "I swim so I can finally **_love_** myself and others again!"

"I swam to achieve medals and fame but my true reason to swim is because it allows me to **_focus_** on the things dear to me," Kyle shared his thoughts.

"And I swim because it's my **_destiny_**…" Alex concluded.

* * *

**…Continuing from the Graduation Scene (Current Day)  
Peoria Sports Complex 83:**

After the speeches were made, the superintendent spoke for another 5 minutes or so at the podium before the program switched over to handing the diplomas. Despite being in Alphabetical order, Anastasia and her half-sisters communicated on their phones via texting to stay alert of any warning sign of the witches. At one point, Maya sent a picture to the girls showing them winning the medley relay in regionals and earning 6th place in the Western Division of Nationals.

When it was finally time to walk the stage, the students walked in an orderly fashion. Alex cried with joy as soon as he heard Ana's name being called as the daughter received the diploma at long last.

"Oh Sandro…" Sergi chuckled, handing him a tissue.

"I can't help myself," he answered.

When it was finally time to announce the students as official alumni, the skies started to turn dark a little. Sergi checked his phone to see if it was going to rain but there was no official report. Paranoid, Alex sent messages to Ana if this was the work of the witches. The message was sending…sending…

_That bitch_, he thought, _is it my phone…_

"Sergi, check your phone, does it still have cellular…?" he asked.

"No. Neither is Rosie's!" the brother answered.

The skies darkened up as the winds swept in a little. Everyone in the audience panicked a little. Kyle sensed dark magic heading this way as he nodded to him.

"We have to get to the kids now!" Alex called out, "Sergi! Rosie, please keep our moms safe!"

They nodded as everyone began to evacuate but the lines were too slow. Blasts of magic finally struck the field, creating five burnt circles in a specific pattern. Several students screamed in horror while the four girls stood together at the ready with Alex and Kyle.

Suddenly, everything grew silent as the people in the crowds slumped down to the ground in some sort of a sleeping spell. The six gasped and realized that their enemies were here.

"Should we escape!?" Kyle asked.

"I have a bad feeling that they are going to trap us in here," Alex replied as he looked up to see something encasing the field in some sort of a barrier.

A flash of lightning summoned a group of hooded figures with some of them screeching painful noises like several hyenas. Alex and the others stayed back at a safe distance, watching what was going on in front of them.

"I have waited so many years to cast this curse," the young hooded man spoke before turning to the leading witch, "Thank you, for everything."

"So, you finally found a mother figure. You do realize that she is tricking you," the lady said.

The hooded figure who followed Verrado turned around, "I didn't tell you this yet but in this new land, I will be controlling you. You will have fake memories blended into your new persona and it will come to the fact that you believed you cast this curse."

"Why the hell would I be the one to do this if I actually didn't?" she asked.

"Because in your head, you cast this curse to ensure that you will cultivate enough magic to get your revenge to those heroes who wronged you," the hooded being said, "You won't know it's for revenge but you will become power hungry enough to do whatever you'll be doing."

"I may have despised them and wanted to kill them but…" the lady began.

"Once you cultivate enough magic…I will rip it from you and your life will crumble back down to the dust like in the underworld," the figure answered, "Now stop asking silly questions…and go to sleep with your favorable child."

The lady collapsed into a sleeping spell before being taken to a certain spot on the field. The hooded figures finally turned to the heroes and approached them slowly.

One of them unveiled their head as Verrado walked up in front of the group towards them. The figure who casted the lady to sleep followed Verrado right behind her. The other hooded witches were busy setting up the ritual with candles and petals.

"Long time no see…my girls…and you self-conceited gays," Verrado smiled.

Alex wanted to throw a punch, but Kyle held him back as the witch added, "That's right. You wanna restrain this wildebeest. Otherwise he'll end up with that fate between life and death again."

"I have nothing to hide about my past," Alex said, "But you are only broken smoke and mirrors!"

"Well, I can assure you that these girls told you the truth about their backstories. Except…one of them has a far more twisted story," Verrado said before nodding to the second hooded person.

"And who is standing with you?" Laura asked.

"Someone…you know all too well. But I altered your memories for a period of time until this very moment," Verrado answered as Kei revealed himself. He was much older than she can recalled but he still had the prominent features of blond hair and the spectacles...

Laura's eyes widened in shock, "K-KEI!?"

"Hello…sis," the younger Tsukishima brother chuckled, "I was expecting a different reaction but I am impressed you remember me even after all that memory wipe done to you. Your magic has certainly grown..."

"W-why ARE YOU DOING THIS?!" Laura shouted.

"I'm sick and tired of mommy favoring Akiteru. Do you remember when she managed to wake him up after stealing Verrado's magic? That happiness didn't last long between us as a result. So instead of killing him like I did in my previous life, I decided to do something far worse at the two of them. To proceed with that, we're gonna need some ingredients from you guys," Kei explained, snapping his fingers as he obtained four strands of hair from each of the girls.

"Tell me the truth on what happened to us?" Laura asked.

"Oh...after father died, I had this fine friend here to teach me on my magic," Kei continued, "I eventually ran away, and mother didn't even care to notice. She put you as the housemaid for some time until you too ran away…I don't know who helped you to escape but that doesn't matter. I joined my new family here and as a team, we can do anything we desire...starting with your deaths!" he replied.

Verrado waved out her hand towards the girls as the symbols on their wrists burned to life, forcing them to scream in agony. Alex and Kyle tried to shield them but Verrado and Kei laughed at this.

Anastasia gasped to see her wrist bleeding from the Star of Wicca. She could feel her life slipping away slowly with so much blood leaking out. The four girls fell to the grass as they were about to enter in a state of hypovolemic shock.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THEM!?" Alex roared, holding onto Anastasia.

"What witches do best," Kei answered, "Since they refused to become one of ours, we're going to sacrifice their lives so they can fulfill our purpose as The Adversary."

"There has to be a way to save them!" Kyle answered.

"There is…" Verrado replied, "By taking these girls to another land entirely where they will be under a curse. The Dark Curse will halt the magic from killing them but it will also affect your relationships, your inherited traits, as well as your memories."

"We have already prepared all the ingredients…including Abigail, Akiteru, the hairs from the four of these girls, and of course a box of soul energy from past sacrifices," Kei continued, "But…the final ingredient…"

_**"Is blood from a human who survived a near-death experience of the C-Durabolin drug by the powers of heaven…"**_

Alex's eyes widened as flashbacks filled in his mind about that era. It was something he didn't want to revisit this…he grunted as a silent tear fell from his face and splashed onto Anastasia's cheeks.

"Anastasia…I'm so sorry…" he whispered sadly, "Hang in there! We'll save you and the others too!"

"Times running out human," Kei answered, "The entire city of Phoenix is asleep now so you have no one to turn to."

"Soooooo what will it be mortal?" Verrado asked, "The Dark Curse…or the Sleeping Curse and the loss of your family and friends?"

"Sandro don't do it!" Sergi protested as the mother stared at this scene along with Kyle's mother. Rosie was starting to feel sleepy with the curse.

"Brother, she killed our father...and did a lot of other unforgivable crimes! I'm not letting her take Anastasia, her half-sisters, or anyone else ever again!" he replied, "Keep the family safe together and protect our moms!"

Finally, after setting Ana down next to her half-sisters, Alex got up and turned to Kyle with a small smile of hope saying, "I'll always find you…and we'll get our family back…I promise."

Kyle nodded while Alex stared at the witches, walking towards them with a dark expression and raising up his right hand.

"Alright…let's do this," he said, before staring at Verrado sharply.

_"But know one thing you bitch…_**_this is NOT over!"_** Alex growled, taking out his pocket knife and cutting open his hand before squeezing his fist. Verrado replied with a wicked smile. Sergi held onto his sleep-driven wife as the two mothers also began to fell to the sleeping curse effects. Time was up…the wheels of fate have begun…

Three drops of blood fell to the grass before igniting an orange gel streaming across the entire field. It crafted a gigantic magical circle similar of the inverted pentacle. The substance reached to the other four points of the star, encasing the box, the two humans, and the hairs with energy.

A tall, vortex of smoke filled with black, red, and orange magic effects grew from the center of the pentacle, heading up to the skies. The group watched in its majestic beauty and horror being unleashed.

Kei smiled wickedly at this while Verrado raised up her arms to send the fiery clouds of the dark curse across the entire valley, reaching as far south as Casa Grande, to the north at Black Canyon City, to the west at Buckeye, and finally to the east as Gold Canyon.

Alex stared at their enemies with a vengeful expression and a vow of hope in his heart. Kyle hugged Alex from behind, holding onto him while looking at Anastasia with tears.

_If there was anything Alex learned from his alternate self, heroes will find a way to break the curse…_

**_Finally, the curse washed them too as the new journey was about to begin…to where they were going will soon be said…_**

**Pre-Story/Book 0:** Road to the Curse END

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A NEW SAGA BEGINS! THE OFFICIAL LINE UP!  
**_Estimated Dates of Release. They are subject to change so stay tuned!_**

**『Free! – Series Four – Cosmos World Chronicle****』**  
フリー！– ザ第4シリーズ – コスモスワールドクロニクル

**Pre-Story/Book 0:** Road to the Curse What you just read

**Book 1:** The Curse of Hollywood Heights – October 2019

**Book 2:** World of Sports – Winter/Spring 2020

**Book 3:** Ever Blue Company – Summer 2020

**Book 4:** Return of the Magic Six! – Fall 2020

**Book 5:** War of the Allegiant Twins – Winter 2021

**Movie Novel**: TBA – Spring 2021

**ADDITIONAL STORIES!: ****『**~Extra Stories Arc~**』**番外編  
These are basically more mini-stories bundled together as "one book" but they have their own specific time and settings.

**_Book 0.5: _**_Earthly Tales of the Past (September 2019)_

**_Book 1.5:_** _The Prince of the West Star_

**_Book 2.5: _**_Rasputin's Trail Adventure_

**_Book: 3.5: _**_Magic Six of the Resurrection!_

**_Book 4.5: _**_Darkness of the Witch!_

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**Gen 3.0 Series Synopsis:**

The Final Battle ends in the hands of heroes again, but Chaos has driven itself to a new realm and discovers a possibility of destroying everything once more. Meanwhile, a new curse is enacted, separating love ones from reuniting and increasing new threats! The untold stories of many characters will finally be told in new legends that will spark the third generation of the Iwatobi Suiei Gods!

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**Book 0.5: Earthly Tales of the Past  
Synopsis:**

As the series of Free! grows into the realm of university/college, more tales of the adulthood are finally revealed with their counterparts and ties to Suiei!Earth are at last revealed! Three tales shall be told with each holding a burdening secret!

**Prime Setting:** Gen 1.0, Suiei!Earth (during the flashback events from _Voyage of the Magic Six, Book 3: Eternal Promise_), mostly on the continent of Lywnin-Mu but Japan and other places and flashbacks will appear too.

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**Book 1: The Curse of Hollywood Heights  
Synopsis:**

Artemis Patterson is about the complete his high school years but the Dark Curse begins to weaken as his magic grows, stirring up problems. The new heroes led by Asahi Shiina and Ikuya Kirishima begin to track down but other stories clash, triggering a series of unpredictable chain reactions. What is the consequence of breaking the curse? Who is the real villain behind the creation of Hollywood Heights?


End file.
